Enhanced therapeutic neovascularization by CD31-expressing cells and embryonic stem cell-derived endothelial cells engineered with chitosan hydrogel containing VEGF-releasing microtubes.

Various stem cells and their progeny have been used therapeutically for vascular regeneration. One of the major hurdles for cell-based therapy is low cell retention in vivo, and to improve cell survival several biomaterials have been used to encapsulate cells before transplantation. Vascular regeneration involves new blood vessel formation which consists of two processes, vasculogenesis and angiogenesis.

Guiding intracortical brain tumour cells to an extracortical cytotoxic hydrogel using aligned polymeric nanofibres.

Glioblastoma multiforme is an aggressive, invasive brain tumour with a poor survival rate. Available treatments are ineffective and some tumours remain inoperable because of their size or location. The tumours are known to invade and migrate along white matter tracts and blood vessels.

Laminin Functionalized Biomimetic Nanofibers For Nerve Tissue Engineering.

Large-gap peripheral nerve injuries present a significant challenge for nerve regeneration due to lack of suitable grafts, insufficient cell penetration, and repair. Biomimetic nanofibrous scaffolds, functionalized on the surface with extracellular matrix proteins, can lead to novel therapies for repair and regeneration of damaged peripheral nerves. Here, nanofibrous scaffolds electrospun from blends of poly(caprolactone) (PCL) and chitosan were fabricated.

Self assembled temperature responsive surfaces for generation of cell patches for bone tissue engineering.

One of the major challenges in the fabrication of tissue engineered scaffolds is the ability of the scaffold to biologically mimic autograft-like tissues. One of the alternate approaches to achieve this is by the application of cell seeded scaffolds with optimal porosity and mechanical properties. However, the current approaches for seeding cells on scaffolds are not optimal in terms of seeding efficiencies, cell penetration into the scaffold and more importantly uniform distribution of cells on the scaffold.

Photocrosslinkable chitosan based hydrogels for neural tissue engineering.

Hydrogel based scaffolds for neural tissue engineering can provide appropriate physico-chemical and mechanical properties to support neurite extension and facilitate transplantation of cells by acting as 'cell delivery vehicles'. Specifically, gelling systems such as photocrosslinkable hydrogels can potentially conformally fill irregular neural tissue defects and serve as stem cell delivery systems. Here, we report the development of a novel chitosan based photocrosslinkable hydrogel system with tunable mechanical properties and degradation rates.

Impact of Scaffold Micro and Macro Architecture on Schwann Cell Proliferation under Dynamic Conditions in a Rotating Wall Vessel Bioreactor.

Over the last decade tissue engineering has emerged as a powerful alternative to regenerate lost tissues owing to trauma or tumor. Evidence shows that Schwann cell containing scaffolds have improved performance in vivo as compared to scaffolds that depend on cellularization post implantation. However, owing to limited supply of cells from the patients themselves, several approaches have been taken to enhance cell proliferation rates to produce complete and uniform cellularization of scaffolds.

Spiral-structured, nanofibrous, 3D scaffolds for bone tissue engineering.

Polymeric nanofiber matrices have already been widely used in tissue engineering. However, the fabrication of nanofibers into complex three-dimensional (3D) structures is restricted due to current manufacturing techniques. To overcome this limitation, we have incorporated nanofibers onto spiral-structured 3D scaffolds made of poly (epsilon-caprolactone) (PCL).

Magnetically induced protein gradients on electrospun nanofibers.

Peripheral nerve regeneration can be significantly enhanced by the distribution of the extracellular matrix (ECM) proteins at an increasing concentration along the length of a scaffold. In this study, we have created a gradient of an extracellular matrix protein, laminin, on nanofibrous scaffolds using an external magnetic field. The laminin was crosslinked to ferritin, a biocompatible protein with functional amino and carboxylic acid groups on the surface and a magnetically inducible iron core.

Polycaprolactone and bovine serum albumin based nanofibers for controlled release of nerve growth factor.

Tissue engineering approaches for peripheral nerve regeneration employ biodegradable scaffolds coupled with growth factors for improved performance in regeneration of large nerve injuries. Electrospun nanofibers provide a versatile platform for fabrication of scaffolds with extracellular matrix like architecture and increased surface area. Incorporation of growth factors in nanofibers have been previously demonstrated using oil in water emulsion techniques but are associated with burst release and loss of valuable growth factor.

Novel nanofibrous spiral scaffolds for neural tissue engineering.

Due to several drawbacks associated with autografts and allografts, tissue-engineering approaches have been widely used to repair peripheral nerve injuries. Most of the traditional tissue-engineered scaffolds in use are either tubular (single or multi-lumen) or hydrogel-based cylindrical grafts, which provide limited surface area for cell attachment and regeneration. Here, we show a novel poly(lactide-co-glycotide) (PLGA) microsphere-based spiral scaffold design with a nanofibrous surface that has enhanced surface areas and possesses sufficient mechanical properties and porosities to support the nerve regeneration process.