Stem Cells and Hydrogels for Liver Tissue Engineering: Synergistic Cure for Liver Regeneration

The liver is one of the body's tissues that has regenerative abilities. But if the damage is too much, it needs to medical interventions for the regeneration. Liver donor shortage causes researchers to turn to other treatments. Tissue engineering is a new approach to liver regeneration. Hydrogels are polymeric networks of hydrophilic, flexible, and similar to natural tissue. Therefore, they are used to encapsulate cells These constructs are potent substrates to induce differentiation of stem cells to the hepatocytes. According to inadequate availability of the hepatocytes, an alternative cell is required to produce hepatocyte-like cells. Due to the self-renewal and differentiation properties of stem cells, they are suitable cell sources to replace the lostcells. This review has focused on liver regeneration, advantages and disadvantages of hydrogels for liver regeneration, injectable materials, hydrogel fabrication methods, including 3D printing, and stem cells for liver regeneration. Furthermore, this paper shows in vitro, preclinical, and clinical trial studies of hydrogel and stem cells for liver regeneration. Graphical abstract.