Novel peptide-based biomaterial scaffolds for tissue engineering. |
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Authors: | Todd C Holmes |
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Affiliation: | Department of Biology, New York University, New York, NY 10003, USA. todd.holmes@nyu.edu |
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Abstract: | Biomaterial scaffolds are components of cell-laden artificial tissues and transplantable biosensors. Some of the most promising new synthetic biomaterial scaffolds are composed of self-assembling peptides that can be modified to contain biologically active motifs. Peptide-based biomaterials can be fabricated to form two- and three-dimensional structures. Recent studies show that biomaterial promotion of multi-dimensional cell-cell interactions and cell density are crucial for proper cellular differentiation and for subsequent tissue formation. Other refinements in tissue engineering include the use of stem cells, cell pre-selection and growth factor pre-treatment of cells that are used for seeding scaffolds. These cell-culture technologies, combined with improved processes for defining the dimensions of peptide-based scaffolds, might lead to further improvements in tissue engineering. Novel peptide-based biomaterial scaffolds seeded with cells show promise for tissue repair and for other medical applications. |
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