Covalently tethered transforming growth factor beta in PEG hydrogels promotes chondrogenic differentiation of encapsulated human mesenchymal stem cells.

Methods to precisely control growth factor presentation in a local and sustained fashion are of increasing interest for a number of complex tissue engineering applications. The cytokine transforming growth factor beta (TGFβ) plays a key role in promoting the chondrogenic differentiation of human mesenchymal stem cells (hMSCs). Traditional chondrogenic approaches utilize soluble delivery, an approach with limited application for clinical translation.