Nanofiber Scaffolds for Treatment of Spinal Cord Injury

Title:Nanofiber Scaffolds for Treatment of Spinal Cord Injury

Volume: 21 Issue: 37

Author(s): Jia-Song Guo, Chang-Hui Qian, Eng-Ang Ling and Yuan-Shan Zeng

Affiliation:

Keywords: Biocompatibility, electrospun, nanofiber scaffolds, neural regeneration, phase separation, self assembling peptide, spinal cord injury, tissue engineering, topography.

Abstract: Spinal cord injury (SCI) is a common neurologic disorder that results in loss of sensory function and mobility. It is well documented that tissue engineering is a potential therapeutic strategy for treatment of SCI. In this connection, various biomaterials have been explored to meet the needs of SCI tissue engineering and these include natural materials, synthetic biodegradable polymers and synthetic non- degradable polymers. Nanofiber scaffolds are newly emerging biomaterials that have been widely utilized in tissue engineering recently. In comparison to the traditional biomaterials, nanofibers have advantages in topography and porosity, thus mimicking the naturally occurring extracellular matrix. Besides, they exhibit excellent biocompatibility with low immunogenicity, and furthermore they are endowed with properties that help to bridge the lesion cavity or gap, and serve as an effective delivery system for graft cells or therapeutic drugs. This review summarizes some of the unique properties of nanofiber scaffolds which are critical to their potential application in treatment of injured spinal cord.

Cite this article as:

Guo Jia-Song, Qian Chang-Hui, Ling Eng-Ang and Zeng Yuan-Shan, Nanofiber Scaffolds for Treatment of Spinal Cord Injury, Current Medicinal Chemistry 2014; 21 (37) . https://dx.doi.org/10.2174/0929867321666140815124648