Smart Functional Biomaterials for Cancer Therapeutics and Tissue Engineering

Dear Colleagues,

Smart functional biomaterials represent a rapidly evolving group of materials with a huge potential in the fields of cancer treatment and tissue engineering. These advanced materials, which can be designed at the molecular, nano, or micro-scales are being developed to mimic or interact with biological environments and provide unique functionalities such as targeted drug release, controlled cell interaction, and tissue regeneration.

During the last decade, the biomaterials field has grown significantly due to the demand for more targeted, efficient, and patient-friendly approaches to treating cancer and repairing damaged tissues. Various natural and synthetic, as well as hybrid biomaterials have been applied for the development of systems that can encapsulate, protect, and directly deliver therapeutic molecules to the cells or tissues. Smart biomaterials can be programmed to release the encapsulated agents in response to physiological changes such as pH, temperature, redox gradients, enzyme activity, or mechanical stress, resulting in increased therapeutic specificity and minimized systemic toxicity. The use of responsive platforms in cancer treatment opens the possibilities of not only overcoming biological barriers but also enhancing tumor retention and achieving spatiotemporally controlled release of chemotherapeutics, biologics, or gene therapies.

In the area of tissue engineering, functional biomaterials can replicate the role of the extracellular matrix and provide the biochemical and mechanical signals that are necessary for cell adhesion, proliferation, and differentiation to take place. Along with the development of multimodal and multifunctional materials, there is the use of platforms where therapeutic delivery is integrated with imaging capabilities, enabling the development of theranostic systems that simultaneously diagnose, monitor, and treat diseases. In addition, advancements in bioactive surface modifications, bioadhesive constituents, and dynamic crosslinking strategies are incessantly enhancing the performance of materials and their use in clinical practice.

Despite the progress on the biomaterials field, further exploration is needed to optimize interactions between biomaterials and cells, improve biodegradability and biocompatibility and design highly tunable formulations that can mimic complex tissue microenvironments. Continued research in this area will be very important for the development of the next generation of cancer treatments and regenerative cell therapy.

We are pleased to invite you to submit your contributions to this Special Issue focusing on smart functional biomaterials for cancer therapeutics and tissue engineering. The purpose of this issue is to highlight current advancements, innovative developments, and emerging applications which might shape the future of biomaterial-based therapies.

In this Special Issue, original research and review articles are both welcome. Research areas include, but are not limited to, stimuli-responsive biomaterials, injectable scaffolds, biomaterials-based platforms for targeted cancer therapy, bioactive scaffolds for tissue regeneration, multifunctional and theranostic platforms, and smart biomaterial systems integrating cancer diagnostics and therapy.

We eagerly anticipate receiving your contributions.

Dr. Panoraia I. Siafaka
Prof. Dr. Neslihan Üstündaǧ Okur
Guest Editors

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