[Cell transplantation in surgery--reality and prospects for tissue engineering]

Traditionally surgical repair of tissue defects and loss or failure of function has relied on mechanical means, medical (drug) treatment, autologous and allogenic transplantation, and alloplastic/synthetic devices. Tissue engineering represents a new interdisciplinary field of applied research combining engineering and biosciences together with clinical application (mainly in surgical specialities) to develop living substitutes for tissues and organs. The understanding of cell-cell interactions and chemical signalling (growth factors) and the selection of appropriate matrices (cell-matrix interaction) is the key for success. Gene therapy represents the logical combination with tissue engineering on the molecular biology level. Application of cultivated skin and cartilage has already become reality, engineering of vascularized, more complex organs remains a challenge for this century.