History of Injectable Tissue Engineering

Many of us have all heard the saying that a “lizard can lose its tail,” and bizarrely enough it will grow back. This was always considered impossible for humans, an idea belonging in the realm of science fiction, but now the regeneration of tissue is an extremely realistic possibility. Despite some opinions, this process does not happen naturally, or take place as cinematically as one might imagine. Over the past decade, there have been major advances in regenerative medicine, commonly known as stem cell research. Stem cells are undifferentiated cells within the body that have the capability to specialize into any tissue. They are most commonly found in cord blood, bone marrow, organ donations, placenta, and embryos . Stem cells are seen by some as a new miracle treatment, encouraging many countries to invest in their research.

Tissue engineering is an emerging interdisciplinary field that uses principles from engineering, biology and chemistry in an effort towards tissue regeneration. The main draw of tissue engineering is the regeneration of a patient’s own tissues and organs free from low biofunctionality and poor biocompatibility and serious immune rejection. As medical care continues to improve and life expectancy continues to grow, organ shortages become more problematic.(Manufacturing living things) According to organdonor.gov, a patient is added to the waiting list every 10 minutes and an average of 18 people die everyday waiting for an organ donation. The “nirvana” of tissue engineering is to replace the need for organ donation altogether. This could be achieved using scaffolding from

Additionally, I am ready to pay more attention to this topic while in university and get involved in activities concerning tissue viability/ wound care. Besides, I would like to have the possibility to consider this topic for my dissertation essay at the end of my 3rd year.

The recovery period after large scale injuries could be shortened. The effects are analyzed in an article that states, “True healing could occur thanks to the cloning of their own cells to help the recovery process” (“Pros and Cons” 5). Basically, the process of cloning healthy cells could be used as an aid in replenishing damage of unhealthy cells. This process, if it were to be actualized, could help recovery progress in anything from pulled muscles to the paralysis of an entire limb. In theory, the same research can be applied in other areas. If this technology is paired with stem cell research, it could result in a method of repairing physical damage. An article that focused on advances in biotechnology stated that “Another use of cloned stem cells could be the growth of replacement tissues in the laboratory” (LaPensee 15). Necrosis, apoptosis, and lymphocyte diapedesis all cause tissue damage or death. These tissues could be replaced by cloned cells of healthy tissues. This shortens recovery periods and leads to healthier tissue growth.

Secondly, advanced 3D printing applied to the medical field can be utilized in an Engels non capitalist technology drive society to impact the area of safety. In this utopian society, advanced 3D printing will have the capabilities to print synthetic tissue and organic tissue that can bond to the patient’s cells. In effect, this helps the patient’s wound heal faster. This type of advanced 3D bio printing can save many lives

Adult stem cells have already proven to be successful in treating diseases and have helped hundreds of thousands of patients, and new clinical uses expand almost weekly. Adult stem cells can be obtained from cord blood, fat, neural tissue, muscle, bone marrow, placental and skin cells. Adult stem cells are increasingly being shown to have a similar and perhaps an identical capacity to become cells of other types. There is a possibility that adult stem cells may function more efficiently and more safely than embryonic cells. Treena Arinzeh, a young professor who last year won a Presidential Award, the nation's highest scientific honor, is bringing the promise of stem cell research one step closer to reality. Adult stem cells also have a unique trait that lends them their magic: Under the right conditions, or given the proper signals, they have the ability to turn into different cell types. Arinzeh is doing exactly that: developing signals, in the form of biomaterials, that will help adult stem cells turn into cells that, if injected into a diseased area of the human body, could regenerate damaged tissue. Her research has also led to two major stem-cell discoveries: One showing that stem cells, when mixed with biomaterials known as scaffolds, can help regenerate bone growth; and another proving that stem cells taken from one person can be successfully implanted into another. A list of conditions for which stem-cell treatment holds promise grows almost daily: It now

There are two methods of cloning organs. One is by injecting a growth factor into the wound site, causing the patient's own cells to migrate and regenerate. The other method is to harvest donor cells and pack them into a three-dimensional polymer scaffold, which is molded into the desired shape. These cells replicate and then can be transplanted into a recipient. The polymer breaks down as the cells form into the shape desired. These organs are called neo-organs. While this may sound like something straight out of a science fiction film, like Dolly, neo-organs are already a reality. All over the United States, grown skin is being used to treat everything from burn victims to skin cancer patients. Also, machines containing cloned liver cells are being used to filter blood until a transplant can be found. Cartilage, because of it's relatively simple structure, seems likely to be the next step. Larger organs will take

The reason stem cells are such a big breakthrough in medical technology is that they are cells that have the remarkable ability to grow into just about any cell in the body (Introduction n. pag). In fact, stem cells that remain in the human body after birth “serve as a sort of internal repair system,” in many tissues and organs (Basics n. pag). This is an extremely efficient way of healing since stem cells can become

In the past, the only way to replace diminished cells, tissues, and organs was from organ transplantation. An organ donor was needed, and the tissues would be surgically removed from the donated body and placed into the recipient. Due to the current research being conducted, it is believed that tissue engineering and organ printing can contribute to the process of improving and saving lives.

As today’s technology is changing, some of the most major effects of it are superior advances in the medical field. One advance in the medical field is tissue engineering. It is being developed for use in regenerative medicine and soon to be in wider use for other treatments. Tissue engineering’s goal for the future is for the medicine to be able to stimulate other cells around the damage area of the body to get them to grow and produce living tissue (Sciencedaily). Another medical advancement is the monitoring systems and how hospitals can better track for problems and signs of an emergency. This can also help the surgeons decide how to stitch up a patient for best recovery time (Sciencedaily). As technology keeps progressing, another medical advancement is the way surgeons are doing operations. Today, for complex surgeries, surgeons now will get help from the use of a robot for accurate procedures; this will help with the size of the incision and keep the recovery time shorter than during standard surgery.

Traumatic acute events leading to tendon losses as well as ruptures related to degenerative tendinopathy require a replacement of the damaged tissue. Yet in these cases, the healing process does not efficiently restore the native tendon structure and function, despite the surgical intervention with a high rate of re-tear (Sharma and Maffulli, 2006; Andarawis-Puri et al. 2015). Nowadays, tendon autografts are the common choice to reconstruct the tendon integrity, despite their limited supply, high donor-site morbidity, and poor functional outcomes ( Gazdag et al., 1995; Lovati et al., 2016). To overcome these limitations, tissue engineering widely investigated the generation of cell seeded scaffolds to promote regeneration and implant-tissue

"A main obstacle in tissue engineering and regenerative medicine is offering the new tissue with a network of blood vessels, and connecting this to the individual's present blood supply; this is important for the tissue's survival and incorporation with adjacent tissues."

The worldwide incidence of bone disorders and conditions has trended steeply upward and is expected to double by 2020, especially in populations where aging is coupled with increased obesity and poor physical activity. Engineered bone tissue has been viewed as a potential alternative to the conventional use of bone grafts, due to their limitless supply and no disease transmission. However, bone tissue engineering practices have not proceeded to clinical practice due to several limitations or challenges. Bone tissue engineering aims to induce new functional bone regeneration via the synergistic combination of biomaterials, cells, and factor therapy. In this review, we discuss the fundamentals of bone tissue engineering, highlighting the current

Lately, there is an emerging innovation whereby organs are created to form and increase in size by a process of inorganic accretion, from the patient’s cell. This field of medicine is known as the regenerative medicine. In addition to this, there are basically various types of regenerative medical

Andree, C., et al. “Gene Technology and Tissue Engineering.” Minimally Therapy & Allied Technologies 11.3 (2002): 93-99. Academic Search Premier. Web. 18 March 2014.