In this workshop, you will learn biofabrication and biohybrid design tools to build your own soft robotic device out of myoblast cells derived from mice muscle. You will gain skills from biology and mechanical engineering, such as cell culture, computer aided design (CAD), and stereolithography (SLA) 3D printing to create “biobot” muscle rings. You will create biocompatible skeletons for the muscle rings and stimulate them with light or electricity to cause contractions and exert measurable forces onto the skeletons. Fabricating biobots is an introduction to the many exciting applications for biorobotics, such as understanding the biological motor control system and its role in disease and traumatic injury repair.

Capacity: 8
Schedule: Wednesday, January 11th 2-5 pm, Friday, January 13th 2-5 pm, Wednesday, January 18th 2-5 pm, Friday, January 20th 2-5 pm, Wednesday, February 1st 2-5 pm. Participants attend all sessions.
Workshop Contact: Tara Sheehan (sheehant@mit.edu)

This workshop is being offerred through the BioMakerspace IAP workshop series. A full list of IAP offerings may be found here. To register, fill out our Activity Interest Form.