Advanced cell therapies with and without scaffolds

Area of Science:

• Regenerative Medicine
• Tissue Engineering
• Biomaterials Science

Background:

• Tissue engineering and regenerative medicine focus on creating functional tissue substitutes.
• Current approaches include cell therapies, molecular induction, and in vitro tissue growth.
• Advanced cell therapies utilize scaffolds or scaffold-free techniques.

Purpose of the Study:

• To review advanced cell therapies in tissue engineering and regenerative medicine.
• To discuss scaffold-based and scaffold-free strategies.
• To highlight applications in regenerating hard and soft tissues.

Main Methods:

• Review of scaffold characteristics: material, fabrication, and surface functionalization.
• Examination of cell sources and bioreactive agents (e.g., growth factors).
• Analysis of scaffold-free approaches, including cell sheet engineering.

Main Results:

• Scaffold-based strategies are detailed for hard (bone, cartilage) and soft (nerve, skin, blood vessel, heart muscle) tissue substitutes.
• Cell sources and growth factors are presented as crucial for guiding cell functions.
• Scaffold-free methods, particularly cell sheet engineering, are explored as emerging alternatives.

Conclusions:

• Both scaffold-based and scaffold-free strategies offer distinct advantages and limitations for tissue regeneration.
• Understanding these approaches is vital for advancing cell therapies.
• This review provides a comprehensive reference for diverse applications in tissue engineering.