Abstract
Numerous surgical procedures are daily performed worldwide to replace and repair damaged tissue. Tissue engineering is the field devoted to the regeneration of damaged tissue through the incorporation of cells in biocompatible and biodegradable porous constructs, known as scaffolds. The scaffolds act as host biomaterials of the incubating cells, guiding their attachment, growth, differentiation, proliferation, phenotype, and migration for the development of new tissue. Furthermore, cellular behavior and fate are bound to the biodegradation of the scaffold during tissue generation. This article provides a critical appraisal of how key biomaterial scaffold parameters, such as structure architecture, biochemistry, mechanical behavior, and biodegradability, impart the needed morphological, structural, and biochemical cues for eliciting cell behavior in various tissue engineering applications. Particular emphasis is given on specific scaffold attributes pertaining to skin and brain tissue generation, where further progress is needed (skin) or the research is at a relatively primitive stage (brain), and the enumeration of some of the most important challenges regarding scaffold constructs for tissue engineering.
Highlights
The human body is by far the most sophisticated autonomous system consisting of billions of molecular nanomachines built from the DNA code of a person’s zygote, which can renew certain type of cells in a complex programmable manner and repair damaged tissue
Scaffolds play a fundamental role in tissue engineering (TE) because they provide mechanical support, allow perfusion of nutrients and oxygen, transfer biochemical signals that modulate cell behavior (e.g., Design Challenges in Polymeric Scaffolds for Tissue Engineering attachment, motility, proliferation, and differentiation), and can be used to release drugs and growth factors
The slow degradation of electrospun PCL scaffolds maintained the rigidity needed for myofibroblast differentiation and the secretion of higher levels of matrix components, whereas the decreased rigidity of the faster degrading poly(glycolic acid)-poly(4-hydroxybutyrate) scaffolds led to the accumulation of acidic byproducts, reduced matrix production, poor cell proliferation and differentiation, and undesirable collagen crosslinking (Balguid et al, 2009)
Summary
Specialty section: This article was submitted to Biomaterials, a section of the journal Frontiers in Bioengineering and Biotechnology. Tissue engineering is the field devoted to the regeneration of damaged tissue through the incorporation of cells in biocompatible and biodegradable porous constructs, known as scaffolds. This article provides a critical appraisal of how key biomaterial scaffold parameters, such as structure architecture, biochemistry, mechanical behavior, and biodegradability, impart the needed morphological, structural, and biochemical cues for eliciting cell behavior in various tissue engineering applications. Particular emphasis is given on specific scaffold attributes pertaining to skin and brain tissue generation, where further progress is needed (skin) or the research is at a relatively primitive stage (brain), and the enumeration of some of the most important challenges regarding scaffold constructs for tissue engineering
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call
