Combining topographical and genetic cues to promote neuronal fate specification in stem cells.

There is little remedy for the devastating effects resulting from neuronal loss caused by neural injury or neurodegenerative disease. Reconstruction of damaged neural circuitry with stem cell-derived neurons is a promising approach to repair these defects, but controlling differentiation and guiding synaptic integration with existing neurons remain significant unmet challenges. Biomaterial surfaces can present nanoscale topographical cues that influence neuronal differentiation and process outgrowth.

Electrospun fibers and tissue engineering.

Electrospinning is an exciting technique attracting more and more attention as a potential solution to the current challenges in the field of tissue engineering. This technique can be used to produce fibrous scaffolds with excellent biocompatibility and biodegradability, as well as suitable micro-/nanostructure to induce desired cellular activities and to guide tissue regeneration. In order to develop electrospun fibrous scaffolds for these applications, different biocompatible materials including natural polymers, synthetic polymers and inorganic substances and preparations have been used to fabricate electrospun fibers with different structures and morphologies.

Stages of neuronal morphological development in vitro--an automated assay.

Following plating in vitro, neurons pass through a series of morphological stages as they adhere and mature. These morphological stage transitions can be monitored as a function of time to evaluate the relative health and development of neuronal cultures under different conditions. While morphological development is usually quite obvious to the experienced eye, it can often be difficult to quantify in a meaningful way.

The culture of primary motor and sensory neurons in defined media on electrospun poly-L-lactide nanofiber scaffolds.

Electrospinning is a technique for producing micro- to nano-scale fibers. Fibers can be electrospun with varying degrees of alignment, from highly aligned to completely random. In addition, fibers can be spun from a variety of materials, including biodegradable polymers such as poly-L-lactic acid (PLLA).