Biomedical Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
Chapter 19
advances in Collagen-based tissue engineering
Krystyna Pietrucha
iNtroduCtioN aNd BaCKGrouNd
Transplantation of organs or tissues is a widely accepted therapy to treat patients with
damaged organs or tissues as a result of an accident, trauma, cancer or disease. How-
ever, autologous transplantation is limited because of donor site morbidity and in-
fection or pain to patients because of secondary surgery. Alternative tissue sources
that have origins from other humans remain problematic mainly due to immunogenic
responses by the patients upon implantation and a shortage of donor organs. Each
year, millions of people die still due to shortage of organs to transplantation. Tissue
engineering, which applies methods from engineering and life sciences to create arti-
ficial constructs to direct tissue regeneration, has attracted many scientists, surgeons
with hope to treat patients in a minimally invasive and less painful way. The aim of
tissue engineering, with an interdisciplinary approach, is to break through the barri-
ers which have limited the performance and application of artificial biomaterials over
past decades. The research examinations lead to develop, design and synthesize novel
multi-component structures, using biocompatible and biodegradable natural/synthetic
polymers with/without bioactive molecules that may be used as efficient scaffolds
for engineering tissue. For this ambitious purpose mainly collagen, poly(lactic-co-
glycolic acid) (PLGA), cellulose and glycosaminoglycans (GAG) such as hyaluronic
acid (HA) and chondroitin sulfate (CS), which have different physicochemical proper-
ties and degrade at different rates in human body have been used. The components of
scaffolds are cross-linked/grafted by chemical, physical, and radiation methods. These
scaffolds mimic closely the molecular and structural properties of native extracellular
matrix (ECM). This review focuses on the progress in using some of the scaffolds
for the specific regeneration of tissues. Among it, an advanced tissue engineering of
collagen based materials for therapeutic treatment of injuries to central and peripheral
nervous systems is presented
some asPeCts oF tissue eNGiNeeriNG
Tissue engineering applies scientific principles to the development, design, and con-
struction of biological substitutes that restore, maintain, and improve natural tissue or
organ function (Morrison, 2009). Its scientific input is derived from materials science,
cell biology, physics, chemistry, and importantly, from clinical research. Restoration
of the normal tissue structure and function occurs through the production of new tis-
sue with replicates exactly that which has been lost as a result of degenerative disease,
cancer, an accident or trauma. The restorative process depends on a balanced combina-
tion of cell culture growth with biomaterial/scaffold to support it and with bioactive
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