Multifunctional Scaffolds and Synergistic Strategies in Tissue Engineering and Regenerative Medicine

The increasing demand for organ replacements in a growing world with an aging population as well as the loss of tissues and organs due to congenital defects, trauma and diseases has resulted in rapidly evolving new approaches for tissue engineering and regenerative medicine (TERM). The extracellular matrix (ECM) is a crucial component in tissues and organs that surrounds and acts as a physical environment for cells. Thus, ECM has become a model guide for the design and fabrication of scaffolds and biomaterials in TERM. However, the fabrication of a tissue/organ replacement or its regeneration is a very complex process and often requires the combination of several strategies such as the development of scaffolds with multiple functionalities and the simultaneous delivery of growth factors, biochemical signals, cells, genes, immunomodulatory agents, and external stimuli. Although the development of multifunctional scaffolds and biomaterials is one of the most studied approaches for TERM, all these strategies can be combined among them to develop novel synergistic approaches for tissue regeneration. In this review we discuss recent advances in which multifunctional scaffolds alone or combined with other strategies have been employed for TERM purposes.

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Advances in Regenerative Medicine and Tissue Engineering: Innovation and Transformation of Medicine

Stem Cells International ◽

10.1155/2018/2495848 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 2018 ◽

pp. 1-24 ◽

Cited By ~ 59

Author(s):

Kevin Dzobo ◽

Nicholas Ekow Thomford ◽

Dimakatso Alice Senthebane ◽

Hendrina Shipanga ◽

Arielle Rowe ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Tissue Engineering ◽

Regenerative Medicine ◽

Three Dimensional ◽

The Body ◽

Congenital Defects ◽

Great Promise ◽

Disruptive Technology ◽

3D Bioprinting ◽

Huge Impact ◽

Made In

Humans and animals lose tissues and organs due to congenital defects, trauma, and diseases. The human body has a low regenerative potential as opposed to the urodele amphibians commonly referred to as salamanders. Globally, millions of people would benefit immensely if tissues and organs can be replaced on demand. Traditionally, transplantation of intact tissues and organs has been the bedrock to replace damaged and diseased parts of the body. The sole reliance on transplantation has created a waiting list of people requiring donated tissues and organs, and generally, supply cannot meet the demand. The total cost to society in terms of caring for patients with failing organs and debilitating diseases is enormous. Scientists and clinicians, motivated by the need to develop safe and reliable sources of tissues and organs, have been improving therapies and technologies that can regenerate tissues and in some cases create new tissues altogether. Tissue engineering and/or regenerative medicine are fields of life science employing both engineering and biological principles to create new tissues and organs and to promote the regeneration of damaged or diseased tissues and organs. Major advances and innovations are being made in the fields of tissue engineering and regenerative medicine and have a huge impact on three-dimensional bioprinting (3D bioprinting) of tissues and organs. 3D bioprinting holds great promise for artificial tissue and organ bioprinting, thereby revolutionizing the field of regenerative medicine. This review discusses how recent advances in the field of regenerative medicine and tissue engineering can improve 3D bioprinting and vice versa. Several challenges must be overcome in the application of 3D bioprinting before this disruptive technology is widely used to create organotypic constructs for regenerative medicine.

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Recent Advances on Stimuli-Responsive Hydrogels Based on Tissue-Derived ECMs and Their Components: Towards Improving Functionality for Tissue Engineering and Controlled Drug Delivery

Polymers ◽

10.3390/polym13193263 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 13 (19) ◽

pp. 3263

Author(s):

Julian A. Serna ◽

Laura Rueda-Gensini ◽

Daniela N. Céspedes-Valenzuela ◽

Javier Cifuentes ◽

Juan C. Cruz ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Tissue Engineering ◽

Regenerative Medicine ◽

Disease Modeling ◽

Mechanical Stability ◽

Biological Properties ◽

Stimuli Responsive ◽

Precise Control ◽

External Stimuli

Due to their highly hydrophilic nature and compositional versatility, hydrogels have assumed a protagonic role in the development of physiologically relevant tissues for several biomedical applications, such as in vivo tissue replacement or regeneration and in vitro disease modeling. By forming interconnected polymeric networks, hydrogels can be loaded with therapeutic agents, small molecules, or cells to deliver them locally to specific tissues or act as scaffolds for hosting cellular development. Hydrogels derived from decellularized extracellular matrices (dECMs), in particular, have gained significant attention in the fields of tissue engineering and regenerative medicine due to their inherently high biomimetic capabilities and endowment of a wide variety of bioactive cues capable of directing cellular behavior. However, these hydrogels often exhibit poor mechanical stability, and their biological properties alone are not enough to direct the development of tissue constructs with functional phenotypes. This review highlights the different ways in which external stimuli (e.g., light, thermal, mechanical, electric, magnetic, and acoustic) have been employed to improve the performance of dECM-based hydrogels for tissue engineering and regenerative medicine applications. Specifically, we outline how these stimuli have been implemented to improve their mechanical stability, tune their microarchitectural characteristics, facilitate tissue morphogenesis and enable precise control of drug release profiles. The strategic coupling of the bioactive features of dECM-based hydrogels with these stimulation schemes grants considerable advances in the development of functional hydrogels for a wide variety of applications within these fields.

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Tissue engineering in regenerative medicine

Forum Zakażeń ◽

10.15374/fz2015052 ◽

2015 ◽

Vol 6 (5) ◽

pp. 291-298

Author(s):

Barbara Różalska ◽

Bartłomiej Micota ◽

Małgorzata Paszkiewicz ◽

Beata Sadowska

Keyword(s):

Tissue Engineering ◽

Regenerative Medicine

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Graphene and Graphene-Based Materials in Biomedical Applications

Current Medicinal Chemistry ◽

10.2174/0929867326666190705155854 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 26 (38) ◽

pp. 6834-6850 ◽

Cited By ~ 5

Author(s):

Mohammad Omaish Ansari ◽

Kalamegam Gauthaman ◽

Abdurahman Essa ◽

Sidi A. Bencherif ◽

Adnan Memic

Keyword(s):

Tissue Engineering ◽

Thermal Properties ◽

Gene Delivery ◽

Regenerative Medicine ◽

Biomedical Research ◽

Biomedical Applications ◽

Biomedical Application ◽

Two Dimensional ◽

Drug And Gene Delivery ◽

Biomedical Fields

: Nanobiotechnology has huge potential in the field of regenerative medicine. One of the main drivers has been the development of novel nanomaterials. One developing class of materials is graphene and its derivatives recognized for their novel properties present on the nanoscale. In particular, graphene and graphene-based nanomaterials have been shown to have excellent electrical, mechanical, optical and thermal properties. Due to these unique properties coupled with the ability to tune their biocompatibility, these nanomaterials have been propelled for various applications. Most recently, these two-dimensional nanomaterials have been widely recognized for their utility in biomedical research. In this review, a brief overview of the strategies to synthesize graphene and its derivatives are discussed. Next, the biocompatibility profile of these nanomaterials as a precursor to their biomedical application is reviewed. Finally, recent applications of graphene-based nanomaterials in various biomedical fields including tissue engineering, drug and gene delivery, biosensing and bioimaging as well as other biorelated studies are highlighted.

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