Adding function to hyaluronic acid HA matrices

2 Controlled release of growth factors with proteoglycan mimetics 

Incorporation and slow release of growth factors irom thiol-modified hydrogels can be accomplished by incorporation with thiol-modified heparin (HP-DTPH) 

An alternative to cell delivery per se is to attract endogenous stem cells and precursor cells to the defect site for de novo tissue regeneration. Hepatocyte growth factor (HGF) induces migration of MSCs in vitro but is rapidly degraded by proteolysis in vivo. Extended, localized delivery of HGF was achieved with Heprasil sECM hydrogels, and the sECM composition could be optimized for controlled release of HGF that resulted in recruitment of human bone marrow MSCs into the scaffold in vitro (Zhao et al, 2008). 

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