The development of biocomposite nanofibers for tissue scaffolding applications

Abstract

The last decade has seen significant progress in the production of nanofibers by electrospinning. One of the major drivers to this progress is the potential use of nanofibrous structures as scaffolds for engineering tissues inregenerative medicine. Electrospun fibers are capable of emulating the nanofibrous architecture of the native extracellular matrix. They can potentially provide in-vivo-like nanomechanical and physicochemical signaling cues to the cells to establish apposite cell-scaffold interactions and promote functional changes between and within cells toward synthesis of a genuine extracellular matrix over time. In this context, this paper presents a brief overview of a scaffold design strategy. It also presents recent research pertaining to developing biomimetic and bioactive nanofibrous tissue scaffolds through electrospinning biocomposite nanofibers of organic-organic and inorganic-organic hybrids, which are potentially applicable to soft and hard tissue engineering.