Modelling of Stem Cells Microenvironment Using Carbon-Based Scaffold for Tissue Engineering Application—A Review

Abstract

A scaffold is a crucial biological substitute designed to aid the treatment of damaged tissue caused by trauma and disease. Various scaffolds are developed with different materials, known as biomaterials, and have shown to be a potential tool to facilitate in vitro cell growth, proliferation, and differentiation. Among the materials studied, carbon materials are potential biomaterials that can be used to develop scaffolds for cell growth. Recently, many researchers have attempted to build a scaffold following the origin of the tissue cell by mimicking the pattern of their extracellular matrix (ECM). In addition, extensive studies were performed on the various parameters that could influence cell behaviour. Previous studies have shown that various factors should be considered in scaffold production, including the porosity, pore size, topography, mechanical properties, wettability, and electroconductivity, which are essential in facilitating cellular response on the scaffold. These interferential factors will help determine the appropriate architecture of the carbon-based scaffold, influencing stem cell (SC) response. Hence, this paper reviews the potential of carbon as a biomaterial for scaffold development. This paper also discusses several crucial factors that can influence the feasibility of the carbon-based scaffold architecture in supporting the efficacy and viability of SCs.

Additive Manufactured Poly(ε-caprolactone)-graphene Scaffolds: Lamellar Crystal Orientation, Mechanical Properties and Biological Performance

“…The scaffolds presented the designed configurations, revealing the desired pore interconnectivity to assure scaffold mechanical integrity and, at the same time, assure the possibility of cell migration upon the whole scaffold. Surface wettability is an important factor in scaffold development since it affects the interaction between cells and biomaterials [55,56]. Therefore, assessment of the wettability of the scaffolds was performed by water contact angle in order to evaluate if material surfaces are hydrophilic (contact angle below 90 • ) or hydrophobic (contact angle above 90 • ).…”

Enhancing Bioactivity of Nanofibrous Poly(Caprolactone)/45S5 Bioglass Composite Scaffolds by Incorporation of Ag, GO, and ZnO Nanoparticles

“…This indicates that the addition of GO and ZnO improves the cell adhesion properties of the scaffolds. It is evident from the literature that the addition of carbon materials such as GO, activated charcoal, and carbon nanotube affects the surface roughness and swelling behavior of the scaffolds which could improve the cell adhesion property and viability of cells . Zn ion is an essential supplementary diet that acts as a cofactor for a lot of enzymes and helps in cell signaling pathways .…”

“…It is evident from the literature that the addition of carbon materials such as GO, activated charcoal, and carbon nanotube affects the surface roughness and swelling behavior of the scaffolds which could improve the cell adhesion property and viability of cells. 39 Zn ion is an essential supplementary diet that acts as a cofactor for a lot of enzymes and helps in cell signaling pathways. 40 In PCL/BG/ZnO composite scaffolds, Zn ions released from the ZnO incorporated scaffolds might have enhanced the cell growth in addition to the improved cell adhesion characteristics of PCL/BG.…”

The influence of the structure (surface roughness, pore size, and porosity) of 3D printed silk-fibroin-based scaffolds on the growth of the bronchial epithelial cells in vitro

“…In general, very small pore size could limit the transport of nutrients and cell proliferation, and pore sizes above 300 m could facilitate the vascularized tissue formation 30 . However, cell attachment will also be affected if the pore size is too large, and negatively affecting cell spreading and differentiation 31 . Therefore, pore size should be within a proper range to maintain the balance between the optimal pore size for cell proliferation, nutrients transportation, vascularization and speci c surface area for cell attachment as well as mechanical stability 6 .…”