Biomaterials for Bone Substitutes
A special issue of Journal of Functional Biomaterials (ISSN 2079-4983).
Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (30 September 2011) | Viewed by 41570
Special Issue Editor
Interests: bone stem cells; biomaterials; tissue engineering; bioreactors
Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues,
Biomaterial science holds the promise to solve several problems related to tissue and organ replacement. Several approaches in regenerative medicine, of which tissue engineering is an important part, involve stem cells loaded onto properly designed biomaterials, with the aim of inducing cell differentiation along a pre-defined pathway and regenerating the target tissue according to physiological cues. In clinical practice bone regeneration is a particular challenge, as the demand is increasing due to an ageing population and a high prevalence of osteoporosis. In addition, weight-bearing issues also require consideration in bone biomaterial applications. One of the most intriguing concepts is to design materials able to mimic specific microenvironments, possibly priming the natural processes of cell-driven tissue regeneration. The ideal scaffold should therefore transmit molecular signals at the right time and in the right dose. Scaffold chemical composition thus becomes of crucial importance, but other essential parameters of the scaffold design have to be considered, since they may profoundly influence cell fate both in vitro and in vivo. Indeed, to improve the efficiency of biomaterials aimed at tissue regeneration, the design of the overall architecture of the scaffold, including macro-, micro- and nanostructure, takes on major significance and remains a multi-disciplinary challenge.
Prof. Dr. C. James Kirkpatrick,
Prof. Dr. Rodolfo Quarto
Guest Editors
Keywords
- functional biomaterials
- scaffolds
- microenvironment
- biomimetic cues
- stem cells
- bone regeneration