Engineering electroactive scaffolds for neural regeneration applications

Abstract

Event Abstract Back to Event Engineering electroactive scaffolds for neural regeneration applications Christine E Schmidt1 1 University of Florida, Biomedical Engineering, United States Damage to spinal cord and peripheral nerve tissue can have a devastating impact on the quality of life for individuals suffering from nerve injuries. Our research is focused on analyzing and designing biomaterials, both natural and synthetic, that can interface with neurons and specifically stimulate and guide nerves to regenerate. Part of our research is focused on the use of electrically conducting polymers that can stimulate cell growth and healing. Electrical fields are known to interact with biological tissues, including nerve, cardiac, muscle, and skin tissues, and have been shown to play roles in a variety of biological processes such as cell signaling. Electroactive biomaterials capable of acting as electrical interfaces with the body – including cardiac pacemakers and electrodes for stimulation of the brain – have been approved for clinical application. The tunable properties of conducting polymers (e.g., derivatives of polypyrrole polyaniline, polythiophene) make them attractive components of electroactive biomaterials for drug delivery devices, electrodes and tissue scaffolds. In our research, we have worked predominantly with the conducting polymer polypyrrole for neural applications. We have demonstrated how electrical stimulation using polypyrrole can modulate cell function, such as axonal extension and nerve growth factor release from Schwann cells, the glial cells of the peripheral nervous system. We have also used various approaches such as phage display and multiphoton fabrication to add biological function and physical architecture to polypyrrole, to create electroactive scaffolds with improved properties for implantation and biomedical applications. Conference: 10th World Biomaterials Congress, Montréal, Canada, 17 May - 22 May, 2016. Presentation Type: New Frontier Oral Topic: Biomaterials and cellular signaling Citation: Schmidt C (2016). Engineering electroactive scaffolds for neural regeneration applications. Front. Bioeng. Biotechnol. Conference Abstract: 10th World Biomaterials Congress. doi: 10.3389/conf.FBIOE.2016.01.00271 Copyright: The abstracts in this collection have not been subject to any Frontiers peer review or checks, and are not endorsed by Frontiers. They are made available through the Frontiers publishing platform as a service to conference organizers and presenters. The copyright in the individual abstracts is owned by the author of each abstract or his/her employer unless otherwise stated. Each abstract, as well as the collection of abstracts, are published under a Creative Commons CC-BY 4.0 (attribution) licence (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/) and may thus be reproduced, translated, adapted and be the subject of derivative works provided the authors and Frontiers are attributed. For Frontiers’ terms and conditions please see https://www.frontiersin.org/legal/terms-and-conditions. Received: 28 Mar 2016; Published Online: 30 Mar 2016. Login Required This action requires you to be registered with Frontiers and logged in. To register or login click here. Abstract Info Abstract The Authors in Frontiers Christine E Schmidt Google Christine E Schmidt Google Scholar Christine E Schmidt PubMed Christine E Schmidt Related Article in Frontiers Google Scholar PubMed Abstract Close Back to top Javascript is disabled. Please enable Javascript in your browser settings in order to see all the content on this page.