Abstract
This review highlights the promise of fiber-reinforced hydrogel composites (FRHCs) for augmenting tendon and ligamentrepair and regeneration. Composed of reinforcing fibers embedded in a hydrogel, these scaffolds provide both mechanical strength and a conducive microenvironment for biological processes required for connective tissue regeneration. Typical properties of FRHCs are discussed, highlighting their ability to simultaneously fulfill essential mechanical and biological design criteria for a regenerative scaffold. Furthermore, features of FRHCs are described that improve specific biological aspects of tendon healing including mesenchymal progenitor cell recruitment, early polarization to a pro-regenerative immune response, tenogenic differentiation of recruited progenitor cells, and subsequent production of a mature, aligned collagenous matrix. Finally, the review offers a perspective on clinical translation of tendon FRHCs and outlines key directions for future work.
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