Tai Youyi, Banerjee Aihik, Goodrich Robyn, Jin Lu, Nam Jin
Department of Bioengineering, University of California, Riverside, CA 92521, USA.
Polymers (Basel). 2021 Nov 10;13(22):3880. doi: 10.3390/polym13223880.
Polymeric biomaterials exhibit excellent physicochemical characteristics as a scaffold for cell and tissue engineering applications. Chemical modification of the polymers has been the primary mode of functionalization to enhance biocompatibility and regulate cellular behaviors such as cell adhesion, proliferation, differentiation, and maturation. Due to the complexity of the in vivo cellular microenvironments, however, chemical functionalization alone is usually insufficient to develop functionally mature cells/tissues. Therefore, the multifunctional polymeric scaffolds that enable electrical, mechanical, and/or magnetic stimulation to the cells, have gained research interest in the past decade. Such multifunctional scaffolds are often combined with exogenous stimuli to further enhance the tissue and cell behaviors by dynamically controlling the microenvironments of the cells. Significantly improved cell proliferation and differentiation, as well as tissue functionalities, are frequently observed by applying extrinsic physical stimuli on functional polymeric scaffold systems. In this regard, the present paper discusses the current state-of-the-art functionalized polymeric scaffolds, with an emphasis on electrospun fibers, that modulate the physical cell niche to direct cellular behaviors and subsequent functional tissue development. We will also highlight the incorporation of the extrinsic stimuli to augment or activate the functionalized polymeric scaffold system to dynamically stimulate the cells.
聚合物生物材料作为细胞和组织工程应用的支架，具有优异的物理化学特性。聚合物的化学修饰一直是功能化的主要方式，以增强生物相容性并调节细胞行为，如细胞粘附、增殖、分化和成熟。然而，由于体内细胞微环境的复杂性，仅靠化学功能化通常不足以发育出功能成熟的细胞/组织。因此，能够对细胞进行电、机械和/或磁刺激的多功能聚合物支架在过去十年中引起了研究兴趣。这种多功能支架通常与外源性刺激相结合，通过动态控制细胞的微环境来进一步增强组织和细胞行为。通过对功能性聚合物支架系统施加外在物理刺激，经常可以观察到细胞增殖和分化以及组织功能的显著改善。在这方面，本文讨论了当前最先进的功能化聚合物支架，重点是电纺纤维，它调节物理细胞微环境以引导细胞行为和随后的功能性组织发育。我们还将强调引入外在刺激以增强或激活功能化聚合物支架系统，从而动态刺激细胞。
