Scaffolds, Stem Cells, and Tissue Engineering: A Potent Combination!

Yang Cao; Tristan I. Croll; Justin G. Lees; Bernard E. Tuch; Justin J. Cooper-White

doi:10.1071/CH05145

RESEARCH FRONT

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Scaffolds, Stem Cells, and Tissue Engineering: A Potent Combination!

Yang Cao ^A , Tristan I. Croll ^A , Justin G. Lees ^B , Bernard E. Tuch ^B and Justin J. Cooper-White ^A ^C

+ Author Affiliations

- Author Affiliations

^A Division of Chemical Engineering, University of Queensland, St. Lucia QLD 4072, Australia.

^B Diabetes Transplant Unit, Prince of Wales Hospital & University of New South Wales, Randwick NSW 2031, Australia.

^C Corresponding author. Email: j.cooperwhite@uq.edu.au

Yang Cao is interested in the design and fabrication of three-dimensional scaffolds, surface modification of scaffolds, controlled release of growth factors, as well as in vitro and in vivo examination of the interaction between scaffolds and regenerating tissues. Currently she is a postdoctoral research fellow at the University of Queensland, where she is working on tissue engineering of vascular grafts and meniscus.

Tristan Croll graduated in chemical engineering from the University of Queensland in 2001 and is now on the verge of submitting his Ph.D. thesis, on surface modification of biodegradable polymeric scaffolds, to the University of Melbourne. He hopes to stay within the tissue engineering field for the foreseeable future.

Justin Lees is undertaking his Ph.D. studies on the growth of human embryonic stem cells on three-dimensional scaffolds. He was the recipient of the ‘Home Wilkinson Lowry – Diabetes Stem Cell Research Scholarship’.

Bernie Tuch is the Director of the Diabetes Transplant Unit at the Prince of Wales Hospital in Sydney and Professor of Medicine at the University of New South Wales. He is an endocrinologist on the forefront of developing cell therapies, including embryonic and adult stem cells, for type 1 diabetes. He is also Director of the New South Wales Stem Cell Network.

Justin Cooper-White's publications span the areas of biomaterials engineering, tissue engineering, polymer rheology, biopolymer physics and structureâ€“function, non-Newtonian fluid mechanics, interfacial phenomena, and microfluidics. He was awarded his Ph.D. in March 2000 and currently holds the positions of Associate Professor in Bioengineering in the Division of Chemical Engineering, and Group Leader in the Australian Institute of Bioengineering and Nanotechnology, at the University of Queensland. He is currently Vice President of the Australian Society of Biomaterials and is past President of the Australian Society of Rheology (2002â€“2004).

Australian Journal of Chemistry 58(10) 691-703 https://doi.org/10.1071/CH05145
Submitted: 22 June 2005 Accepted: 4 October 2005 Published: 8 November 2005

Abstract

Stem cells, either from embryonic or adult sources, have demonstrated the potential to differentiate into a wide range of tissues depending on culture conditions. This makes them prime candidates for use in tissue engineering applications. Current technology allows us to process biocompatible and biodegradable polymers into three-dimensional (3D) configurations, either as solid porous scaffolds or hydrogels, with controlled macro and/or micro spatial geometry and surface chemistry. Such control provides us with the ability to present highly controlled microenvironments to a chosen cell type. However, the precise microenvironments required for optimal expansion and/or differentiation of stem cells are only now being elucidated, and hence the controlled use of stem cells in tissue engineering remains a very young field. We present here a brief review of the current literature detailing interactions between stem cells and 3D scaffolds of varying morphology and chemical properties, concluding with remaining challenges for those interested in tissue engineering using tailored scaffolds and stem cells.

Acknowledgments

The authors thank the Australian Research Council for funding part of this project through the Discovery Grants scheme. In addition, partial funding from the ‘Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation (JDRF) – Beta Cell Alliance’ is also appreciated.

References

^* www.expasy.org

Scaffolds, Stem Cells, and Tissue Engineering: A Potent Combination!

Abstract

Acknowledgments

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