Biomedical Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
( a )
( b )
Figure 14.4 Surface Modifi cation of (a) PLGA and (b) PLGA/collagen nanofi bers
deposited on titanium disks with n-HA. Reprinted with permission from ref.
[34],IOP Publishing.
implants imparts osteo integration property to the surface. Thus biomi-
metic self-assembled scaffolds that are ECM-mimic can be fabricated and
the design of building blocks that spontaneously assemble to form biomi-
metic nanofi bers continue to be the key challenge.
14.4
Engineering Stem Cells and Tissues
Having stressed the importance of biomimetic scaffolds to engineer stem
cells and tissues in the earlier topics, some of the works aimed at developing
such biomimetic scaffolds are discussed further in this section. Reported
results reiterate the ability of such biomimetic scaffolds that have resulted
in the successful proliferation of tissue specifi c cells or in the differentia-
tion of stem cells into desired cell types. With the increasing rate of cardio-
vascular diseases, the serious complications that follow, and the inability
of cardiomyocytes to regenerate, there is a demand for a gold standard in
the treatment of cardiovascular diseases [35]. Hence the development of
biomimetic cardiovascular grafts with functional cardiomyocytes is being
studied extensively. This development of a biomimetic scaffold relies on
the understanding of the anatomical structure and the biological function
of blood vessels [28]. Electrospun polymer nanofi bers can be used as heart
muscle patches or as blood vessel grafts. Bursac et al. have shown that neo-
natal rat ventricular cells cultured on polymeric scaffolds differentiated
into cardiac myocytes after 1 week culture in bioreactors [2]. Cultivation
in rotating bioreactors promotes maintenance of cardiac myocyte electro-
physiology and molecular properties. In another study, Kofi dis et al. have
shown the uniform distribution and embedding of neonatal rat cardio-
myocytes within a three-dimensional collagen matrix. The artifi cial matrix
continued to contract rhythmically for 13 weeks [36]. Zimmermann et al.
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