Composite biomaterial scaffolds for cardiac tissue engineering

A. Shapira, R. Feiner, T. Dvir

Research output: Contribution to journalReview articlepeer-review

Abstract

Coronary heart diseases result from the blockage of one of the coronary arteries, which nourishes the heart muscle. This process leads to ischaemia of a segment of the heart and death of the contractile tissue. As cardiac tissue is unable to regenerate itself, heart function is impaired. Tissue engineering (TE) is a field of science that integrates knowledge from biology, materials sciences, engineering and medicine to develop artificial, functional tissue constructs to replace defected tissues. In cardiac TE, contracting cells are seeded within supporting biomaterial scaffolds that provide them with the essential microenvironment for functional tissue assembly. Various strategies and methods for fabricating these scaffolds have been proposed and tested in the last decade, some of which combine multiple elements that altogether contribute to the formation of an improved functional tissue. This review summarises the unique properties of various composite biomaterial scaffolds and highlights their advantages over other pristine scaffolds for engineering functional three-dimensional cardiac patches. 2016 Institute of Materials, Minerals and Mining and ASM International.

Original languageAmerican English
Pages (from-to)1-19
Number of pages19
JournalInternational Materials Reviews
Volume61
Issue number1
DOIs
StatePublished - 1 Feb 2016

Keywords

  • Cardiac tissue engineering
  • Composite nanomaterials
  • Extracellular matrix
  • Myocardial infarction
  • Scaffold

All Science Journal Classification (ASJC) codes

  • Mechanics of Materials
  • Mechanical Engineering
  • Metals and Alloys
  • Materials Chemistry

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