The use of pimonidazole to characterise hypoxia in the internal environment of an in vivo tissue engineering chamber

Employing a tissue engineering chamber, new tissue growth extending up to 0.4 mm from the AV loop endothelium (chambers≤7 days) demonstrated intense pimonidazole binding and, therefore, hypoxia. Tissue growth greater than 0.5 mm from the AV loop endothelium (7-28 days chambers) did not exhibit pimonidazole binding due to a significant increase in the number of new blood vessels and was, therefore, adequately oxygenated.