Tissue engineering research for bone and joint applications entails multidisciplinary teams bringing together the needed expertise in anatomy, biology, biochemistry, pathophysiology, materials science, biomechanics, fluidics, and clinical and veterinary orthopedics. It is the goal of this volume to provide students and investigators who are entering this exciting area with an understanding of the biologic foundations necessary to appreciate the problems in bone and cartilage that may benefit from innovative tissue engineering approaches. This volume includes state-of-the-art information about bone and cartilage physiology at the levels of cell and molecular biology, tissue structure, developmental processes, their metabolic and structural functions, responses to injury, mechanisms of post-natal healing and graft incorporation, the many congenital and acquired disorders, effects of aging, and current clinical standards of care. It reviews the strengths and limitations of various experimental animal models, sources of cells, composition and design of scaffolds, activities of growth factors and genes to enhance histogenesis, and the need for new materials in the context of cell-based and cell-free tissue engineering. These building blocks constitute the dynamic environments in which innovative approaches are needed for addressing debilitating disorders of the skeleton. It is likely that a single tactic will not be sufficient for different applications because of variations in the systemic and local environments. The realizations that tissue regeneration is complex and dynamic underscore the continuing need for innovative multidisciplinary investigations, with an eye to simple and safe therapies for disabled patients. Table of Contents: Introduction / Structure and Function of Bone and Cartilage Tissue / Development / Responses to Injury and Grafting / Clinical Applications for Skeletal Tissue Engineering / Animal Models / Tissue Engineering Principles for Bone and Cartilage / Perspectives

Combating neural degeneration from injury or disease is extremely difficult in the brain and spinal cord, i.e. central nervous system (CNS). Unlike the peripheral nerves, CNS neurons are bombarded by physical and chemical restrictions that prevent proper healing and restoration of function. The CNS is vital to bodily function, and loss of any part of it can severely and permanently alter a person's quality of life. Tissue engineering could offer much needed solutions to regenerate or replace damaged CNS tissue. This review will discuss current CNS tissue engineering approaches integrating scaffolds, cells and stimulation techniques. Hydrogels are commonly used CNS tissue engineering scaffolds to stimulate and enhance regeneration, but fiber meshes and other porous structures show specific utility depending on application. CNS relevant cell sources have focused on implantation of exogenous cells or stimulation of endogenous populations. Somatic cells of the CNS are rarely utilized for tissue engineering; however, glial cells of the peripheral nervous system (PNS) may be used to myelinate and protect spinal cord damage. Pluripotent and multipotent stem cells offer alternative cell sources due to continuing advancements in identification and differentiation of these cells. Finally, physical, chemical, and electrical guidance cues are extremely important to neural cells, serving important roles in development and adulthood. These guidance cues are being integrated into tissue engineering approaches. Of particular interest is the inclusion of cues to guide stem cells to differentiate into CNS cell types, as well to guide neuron targeting. This review should provide the reader with a broad understanding of CNS tissue engineering challenges and tactics, with the goal of fostering the future development of biologically inspired designs. Table of Contents: Introduction / Anatomy of the CNS and Progression of Neurological Damage / Biomaterials for Scaffold Preparation / Cell Sources for CNS TE / Stimulation and Guidance / Concluding Remarks

Tissue Engineering Strategies for Organ Regeneration addresses the existing and future trends of tissue engineering approaches for organ/tissue regeneration or repair. This book provides a comprehensive summary of the recent improvement of biomaterials used in scaffold-based tissue engineering, and the tools and different protocols needed to design tissues and organs. The chapters in this book provide the in-depth principles for many of the supporting and enabling technologies including the applications of BioMEMS devices in tissue engineering, and the combination of organoid formation and three dimensional (3D) bioprinting. The book also highlights the advances and strategies for regeneration of three-dimensional microtissues in microcapsules, tissue reconstruction techniques, and injectable composite scaffolds for bone tissue repair and augmentation. Key Features: Addresses the current obstacles to tissue engineering applications Provides the latest improvements in the field of integrated biomaterials and fabrication techniques for scaffold-based tissue engineering Shows the influence of microenvironment towards cell-biomaterials interactions Highlights significant and recent improvements of tissue engineering applications for the artificial organ and tissue generation Describes the applications of microelectronic devices in tissue engineering Describes different current bioprinting technologies

Cardiac tissue engineering aims at repairing damaged heart muscle and producing human cardiac tissues for application in drug toxicity studies. This book offers a comprehensive overview of the cardiac tissue engineering strategies, including presenting and discussing the various concepts in use, research directions and applications. Essential basic information on the major components in cardiac tissue engineering, namely cell sources and biomaterials, is firstly presented to the readers, followed by a detailed description of their implementation in different strategies, broadly divided to cellular and acellular ones. In cellular approaches, the biomaterials are used to increase cell retention after implantation or as scaffolds when bioengineering the cardiac patch, in vitro. In acellular approaches, the biomaterials are used as ECM replacement for damaged cardiac ECM after MI, or, in combination with growth factors, the biomaterials assume an additional function as a depot for prolonged factor activity for the effective recruitment of repairing cells. The book also presents technological innovations aimed to improve the quality of the cardiac patches, such as bioreactor applications, stimulation patterns and prevascularization. This book could be of interest not only from an educational perspective (i.e. for graduate students), but also for researchers and medical professionals, to offer them fresh views on novel and powerful treatment strategies. We hope that the reader will find a broad spectrum of ideas and possibilities described in this book both interesting and convincing. Table of Contents: Introduction / The Heart: Structure, Cardiovascular Diseases, and Regeneration / Cell Sources for Cardiac Tissue Engineering / Biomaterials: Polymers, Scaffolds, and Basic Design Criteria / Biomaterials as Vehicles for Stem Cell Delivery and Retention in the Infarct / Bioengineering of Cardiac Patches, In Vitro / Perfusion Bioreactors and Stimulation Patterns in Cardiac Tissue Engineering / Vascularization of Cardiac Patches / Acellular Biomaterials for Cardiac Repair / Biomaterial-based Controlled Delivery of Bioactive Molecules for Myocardial Regeneration

Rapid prototyping is used to design and develop medical devices and instrumentation. This book details research in rapid prototyping of bio-materials for medical applications. It provides a wide variety of examples of medical applications using rapid prototyping, including tissue engineering, dental applications, and bone replacement. Coverage also discusses the emergence of computer aided design in the development of prosthetic devices.

Much research has focused on the basic cellular and molecular biological aspects of stem cells. Much of this research has been fueled by their potential for use in regenerative medicine applications, which has in turn spurred growing numbers of translational and clinical studies. However, more work is needed if the potential is to be realized for improvement of the lives and well-being of patients with numerous diseases and conditions. This book series 'Cell Biology and Translational Medicine (CBTMED)' as part of SpringerNature’s longstanding and very successful Advances in Experimental Medicine and Biology book series, has the goal to accelerate advances by timely information exchange. Emerging areas of regenerative medicine and translational aspects of stem cells are covered in each volume. Outstanding researchers are recruited to highlight developments and remaining challenges in both the basic research and clinical arenas. This current book is the third volume of a continuing series.

Stem Cell Biology and Tissue Engineering in Dental Sciences bridges the gap left by many tissue engineering and stem cell biology titles to highlight the significance of translational research in this field in the medical sciences. It compiles basic developmental biology with keen focus on cell and matrix biology, stem cells with relevance to tissue engineering biomaterials including nanotechnology and current applications in various disciplines of dental sciences; viz., periodontology, endodontics, oral & craniofacial surgery, dental implantology, orthodontics & dentofacial orthopedics, organ engineering and transplant medicine. In addition, it covers research ethics, laws and industrial pitfalls that are of particular importance for the future production of tissue constructs. Tissue Engineering is an interdisciplinary field of biomedical research, which combines life, engineering and materials sciences, to progress the maintenance, repair and replacement of diseased and damaged tissues. This ever-emerging area of research applies an understanding of normal tissue physiology to develop novel biomaterial, acellular and cell-based technologies for clinical and non-clinical applications. As evident in numerous medical disciplines, tissue engineering strategies are now being increasingly developed and evaluated as potential routine therapies for oral and craniofacial tissue repair and regeneration. - Diligently covers all the aspects related to stem cell biology and tissue engineering in dental sciences: basic science, research, clinical application and commercialization - Provides detailed descriptions of new, modern technologies, fabrication techniques employed in the fields of stem cells, biomaterials and tissue engineering research including details of latest advances in nanotechnology - Includes a description of stem cell biology with details focused on oral and craniofacial stem cells and their potential research application throughout medicine - Print book is available and black and white, and the ebook is in full color

Essential Fish Biology provides an introductory overview of the functional biology of fish and how this may be affected by the widely contrasting habitat conditions within the aquatic environment. It describes the recent advances in comparative animal physiology which have greatly influenced our understanding of fish function as well as generating questions that have yet to be resolved. Fish taxa represent the largest number of vertebrates,with over 25,000 extant species. However, much of our knowledge, apart from taxonomy and habitat descriptions, has been based on relatively few of them, usually those which live in fresh water and/or are ofcommercial interest. Unfortunately there has also been a tendency to base our interpretation of fish physiology on that of mammalian systems, as well as to rely on a few type species of fish. This accessible textbook will redress the balance by using examples of fish from a wide range of species and habitats, emphasizing diversity as well as recognizing shared attributes with other vertebrates.