New blood vessel formation is essential for tissue regeneration to deliver oxygen and nutrients and to maintain tissue metabolism. In the field of tissue engineering, in vitro fabrication of new artificial vessels has been a longstanding challenge. Here we developed a technique to reconstruct a microvascular system using a polycaprolactone (PCL)/gelatin nanofibrous structure and a co-culture sy...

One of the major challenges to the application of human embryonic stem cells (hESCs) to the repair of defective tissues is the directed differentiation of cells into specific lineages to avoid the formation of inferior heterogeneous tissues. To accomplish this goal, the lineage-specific stem cell population needs to be isolated and optimal differentiation conditions need to be defined. In this ...

Tissue-engineered neocartilage with appropriate biomechanical properties holds promise not only for graft applications but also as a model system for controlled studies of chondrogenesis. Our objective in the present research study is to better understand the impact of fiber diameter on the cellular activity of chondrocytes cultured on nanofibrous matrices. By using the electrospinning process,...

Low back pain is a leading health problem in the United States, which is most often resulted from nucleus pulposus (NP) degeneration. To date, the replacement of degenerated NP relies entirely on mechanical devices. However, a biological NP replacement implant is more desirable. Here, we report the regeneration of NP tissue using a biodegradable nanofibrous (NF) scaffold. Rabbit NP cells were s...

Bacterial cellulose (BC) is a naturally occurring nanofibrous biomaterial which exhibits unique physical properties and is amenable to chemical modifications. To explore whether this versatile material can be used in the treatment of osteochondral defects (OCD), we developed and characterized novel BC-based nanocomposite scaffolds, for example, BC-hydroxyapatite (BC-HA) and BC-glycosaminoglycan...

introduction: the native inability of nervous system to regenerate, encourage researchers to consider neural tissue engineering as a potential treatment for spinal cord injuries. considering the suitable characteristics of induced pluripotent stem cells (ipscs) for tissue regeneration applications, in this study we investigated the adhesion, viability and proliferation of neural progenitors (de...

Peripheral nerve injuries (PNI) can lead to lifetime loss of function and disfigurement. Different methods such as conventional allograft procedures and using of biological tubes have problems for damaged peripheral nerves reconstruction. Designed scaffolds with natural and synthetic materials are now widely used in the reconstruction of damaged tissues. Utilization of absorbable and non-absorb...

Peripheral nerve injuries (PNI) can lead to lifetime loss of function and disfigurement. Different methods such as conventional allograft procedures and using of biological tubes have problems for damaged peripheral nerves reconstruction. Designed scaffolds with natural and synthetic materials are now widely used in the reconstruction of damaged tissues. Utilization of absorbable and non-absorb...

In modern biomaterial design the generation of an environment mimicking some of the extracellular matrix features is envisaged to support molecular cross-talk between cells and scaffolds during tissue formation/remodeling. In bone substitutes chemical biomimesis has been particularly exploited; conversely, the relevance of pre-determined scaffold architecture for regenerated bone outputs is sti...