Hydrogels for Tissue Engineering: Addressing Key Design Needs Toward Clinical Translation.

Area of Science:

• Biomaterials Science
• Regenerative Medicine
• Tissue Engineering

Background:

• Hydrogels offer tunable cell interactions and soft mechanics, making them promising for tissue engineering scaffolds.
• Translating laboratory successes of hydrogel scaffolds to clinical applications remains a significant challenge.
• Current limitations hinder the efficient translation of hydrogel-based therapies.

Purpose of the Study:

• To review critical design criteria for translationally-relevant tissue engineering hydrogels.
• To focus on emerging fabrication techniques enabling simultaneous scaffold fabrication and cell loading.
• To propose strategies for accelerating clinical implementation of hydrogel technologies.

Main Methods:

• Review of materials, crosslinkers, and fabrication techniques for tissue engineering hydrogels.
• Emphasis on three integrated fabrication methods: 3D printing, *in situ* tissue engineering, and cell electrospinning.
• Analysis of strategies for single-step scaffold fabrication and cell loading.

Main Results:

• Identified key material and fabrication considerations for translational hydrogel development.
• Highlighted the potential of 3D printing, *in situ* tissue engineering, and cell electrospinning.
• Demonstrated that integrated fabrication approaches can streamline hydrogel scaffold production.

Conclusions:

• Integrated fabrication techniques offer a promising pathway for efficient hydrogel scaffold manufacturing.
• Combining these methods with past translational successes can accelerate clinical adoption.
• Further development in these areas is crucial for advancing hydrogel-based tissue engineering.