Fibrous scaffolds for tissue engineering

Abstract

Fibers are a continuous material structure that have an extremely high ratio of length to width, and are particularly suitable for fabrication into biomaterial scaffolds for tissue engineering since fibrous structures can morphologically resemble extracellular matrix components in tissues. In addition, fibers can be collected and processed into complex fibrous networks using conventional textile techniques, such as knitting, weaving, or braiding, to create three-dimensional (3D) structures with improved structural and mechanical properties. Recently, there is a growing interest in using nanofabrication techniques to fabricate nanometer-sized fibers for tissue engineering. Nano-sized fibers exhibit enhanced physical and biological properties that are favorable for effective biomaterial scaffolds, compared to micro-sized fibers. While great progress using fibrous scaffolds to grow various human tissues has been made, it is important for scaffold-based tissue engineering to develop the next generation smart scaffolds capable of promoting cell-matrix interactions through a bio-inspired surface, and inducing favorable biological activity via controlled release of incorporated biological molecules. © 2011 Springer-Verlag/Wien.