Cartilage regeneration using adipose-derived stem cells

The first tissue engineering product, autologous chondrocytes implantation or transplantation (ACI or ACT), has been available for over a decade. Recently, adult tissue-derived stem cells have received great interest for their ability to promote tissue regeneration. To date, adipose-derived stem cells (ASCs) have been evaluated for new surgical procedures to reconstruct damaged and defective tissue, because they are easiest to harvest due to the large number of stem cells compared to other stem cell sources. However, there are issues in using ASCs for cartilage repair. Thus, we need more information regarding optimal culture conditions and methods to promote chondrogenic lineages of stem cells. The necessary information includes necessary differentiation factors, cell scaffolds, and cell culture conditions. We reviewed the methodology for manufacturing cell constructs using ASCs for clinical applications.