(644a) Nano-Structured Scaffolds for Regenerative Engineering (Invited)

Regenerative Engineering has been defined as ?the integration of tissue engineering with advanced materials science, stem cell science and developmental biology toward the regeneration of complex tissues, organs, or organ systems?. It has elements of tissue engineering, regenerative medicine, and morphogenesis but is distinct from these individual disciplines in that regenerative engineering focuses specifically on the integration and subsequent response of stem cells to biomaterials. Of particular interest to regenerative engineering is the regeneration of the interface between different tissue types using integrated graft systems. Further, regenerative engineering seeks to develop and evaluate biomaterials with the specific focus of stem cell interaction and response. In specific, the interaction of cells with nanotopography has proven to be an important signaling modality in controlling cellular processes. Integrating nanotopographical cues is especially important in engineering complex tissues that have multiple cell types and require precisely defined cell-cell and cell-substrate interactions in a three-dimensional environment. Thus in a regenerative engineering approach, nanoscale materials/scaffolds play a paramount role in controlling cell fate and the consequent regenerative capacity. Nanotechnology has enabled to fabricate nanostructured scaffolds mimicking the natural extracellular matrix (ECM). For example, biodegradable polymers such as polyesters and polyphosphazenes, polymer blends and composites can be electrospun into nanofibers, which provide high surface area for cell attachment, growth, and differentiation. The work of designing and developing nano-structured scaffolds for regeneration of various tissues such as skin, bone, ligament, tendon, cartilage, blood vessel, and nerve, will be discussed. Given the progress in each of these areas, the challenge and preliminary strategies to integrate these individual tissues into one complex organ through regenerative engineering-based integrated graft systems, will also be discussed.