Issue 24, 2019

Recent advances in the design of injectable hydrogels for stem cell-based therapy

Abstract

Stem cell therapy holds promise for the treatment of many diseases but the efficacy is limited by the unfavorable environments in the impaired tissues. The use of hydrogel scaffolds has been proposed as a strategy to overcome this by improving the survival and engraftment of injected stem cells. In particular, injectable hydrogels are deemed highly attractive owing to their ease of use, shape adaptability and ability to access parts of the body that are difficult to reach. In this review, we provide an overview of the recent efforts in the design of various injectable hydrogels for stem cell-based tissue engineering. Herein, we first discuss the different aspects of hydrogels’ physical properties that can regulate stem cell behavior. In addition, we examine in detail the biomaterial (natural, synthetic or hybrid) composition and characteristics of hydrogel matrices used in regenerative medical applications involving stem cells. Lastly, we outline some representative next-generation hydrogel systems with additional features to potentially enhance the therapeutic efficacy and finally we provide a summary and outlook on developments in the field.

Graphical abstract: Recent advances in the design of injectable hydrogels for stem cell-based therapy

Article information

Article type
Review Article
Submitted
11 Marts 2019
Accepted
11 Maijs 2019
First published
29 Maijs 2019

J. Mater. Chem. B, 2019,7, 3775-3791

Recent advances in the design of injectable hydrogels for stem cell-based therapy

K. Liang, K. H. Bae and M. Kurisawa, J. Mater. Chem. B, 2019, 7, 3775 DOI: 10.1039/C9TB00485H

To request permission to reproduce material from this article, please go to the Copyright Clearance Center request page.

If you are an author contributing to an RSC publication, you do not need to request permission provided correct acknowledgement is given.

If you are the author of this article, you do not need to request permission to reproduce figures and diagrams provided correct acknowledgement is given. If you want to reproduce the whole article in a third-party publication (excluding your thesis/dissertation for which permission is not required) please go to the Copyright Clearance Center request page.

Read more about how to correctly acknowledge RSC content.

Social activity

Spotlight

Advertisements