Biomedical Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
Chapter 22
Stem-Cell Nanoengineering
from Bench to Bed
Omid Mashinchian
1
, Shahin Bonakdar
2
, Shahriar Sharifi
3
, and Morteza Mahmoudi
4,5,6
1
Department of Medical Nanotechnology, School of Advanced Technologies in Medicine, Tehran
University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
2
National Cell Bank, Pasteur Institute of Iran, Tehran, Iran
3
Department of Biomedical Engineering, University Medical Center Groningen, Groningen,
The Netherlands
4
Department of Nanotechnology, Faculty of Pharmacy, Tehran University of Medical Sciences,
Tehran, Iran
5
Nanotechnology Research Center, Faculty of Pharmacy, Tehran University of Medical Sciences,
Tehran, Iran
6
Division of Cardiovascular Medicine, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA, USA
Introduction
During recent decades, numerous therapeutic approaches and constructs have been proposed
for replacement, repair, and regeneration of damaged organs and tissues. These constructs
can be created from the merged autologous or xenogeneic cells with natural or synthetic
matrix materials, or even pharmaceutical agents, for either
in vivo
or
ex vivo
implantation.
Additionally, these materials have the capability of providing either a structural, mechanical,
and or metabolic function like natural tissues [1, 2]. The objective of this field is to mimic
specific features of target organ/tissue in order to motivate cellular differentiation and orga-
nize into functional tissue assembly [3, 4]. Various developed constructs have been utilized
in both
in vitro
and
in vivo
environments. Among the broad range of constructs, including
autologous cells for cartilage healing or regeneration, tissue-engineered ligament, bone-
graft substitutes, manufactured constructs for regeneration of the cardiovascular system
such as myocardium, valves, and vessels, spinal-cord repairing and nerve regeneration, and
functional restoration of metabolic organs such as the pancreas and liver [4], just skin and
musculoskeletal substitutes have been approved for use in the clinical phase in the United
States by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) [5]. In contrast, other predetermined
applications are still under preclinical studies or regulatory evaluation [6].
The second-generation of engineered tissues could be achieved by multidisciplinary
approaches, including stem-cell biology, materials science, mechanical engineering, bioengi-
neering, chemistry, and computer-assisted modeling/simulation. Advancement of this
technology provides promising approaches to establish a service industry (e.g., libraries for
customized scaffold-matrix materials or cell/stem-cell banks). The National Institutes of
Health (NIH) referred to these engineered-tissue approaches as “regenerative medicine,”
which is the use of cells, biomolecules, and other materials to restore the functional
architecture of an individual's diseased or deficient tissue/organ [7]. Regenerative medicine
