Synthetic polymers tissue engineering scaffolds

Key words synthetic polymers, tissue engineering, bone scaffold, hydrogels, drug delivery. 

Zhang et al. also used a blend of natural and synthetic polymers to try and improve the biocompatibility, mechanical, chemical, and physical properties of tissue engineering scaffolds [42], In this study, the natural polymer, silk fibroin, was selected for biocompatibility, permeability. 

Abstract The main families of synthetic bioresorbable polymers, which find wide medical application as temporary mechanical supports such as sutures, as tissue engineering scaffolds, and as mediators of release rate for the controlled release of drugs are outlined. The physical and chemical mechanisms by which they degrade are discussed and the factors that can affect their rates of degradation are examined. 

Natural polymers such as collagen, elastin, and fibrin make up much of the body s native extracellular matrix (ECM), and they were explored as platforms for tissue engineered constructs [34,47 9]. Polysaccharides such as chitosan, starch, alginate, and dextran were also studied for these purposes. Simultaneously, silk fibroin was widely explored for vascular applications due to its higher mechanical properties in comparison to other natural polymers, such as fibrin [48]. The utilization of natural polymers to create tissue-engineered scaffolds has yielded promising results, both in vitro and in vivo, due in part to the enhanced bioactivity provided by materials normally found within the human body [50]. However, their mechanical response is usually below the required values therefore, synthetic polymers have been explored to achieve the desired properties. 

M. Okamoto, B. John. Synthetic biopolymer nanocomposites for tissue engineering scaffolds. Prog Polym Sci 38,1487-1503, 2013. 

Polymers used in tissue engineering can be naturally derived, synthetic or a combination of both. There are advantages and disadvantages for both synthetic and natural polymer when used as tissue engineering scaffolds which is summarized in Table II. 

For tissue engineering applications, both synthetic and natural polymers need to be processed into scaffolds with suitable structure and chemical properties that match the reproduced tissue. The following part will introduce some commonly used methods of fabricating tissue engineered scaffolds. 

Both synthetic and natural polymers such as polyesters and extracellular macromolecules have been widely used to construct tissue engineered scaffolds. 

Okamoto, M., John, B., 2013. Synthetic biopolymer nanocomposites for tissue engineering scaffolds. Progress in Polymer Science 38 (10-11), 1487-1503. Available at http // linkinghub.elsevier.eom/retrieve/pii/S0079670013000646 (accessed 06.10.14.). 

Neuendorf, R.E., Saiz, E., Tomsia, A.R, Ritchie, R.O., 2008. Adhesion between biodegradable polymers and hydroxyapatite relevance to synthetic hone-like materials and tissue engineering scaffolds. Acta Biomaterialia 4, 1288-1296. 

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