Evaluation of Biological Protein-Based Collagen Scaffolds in Cartilage and Musculoskeletal Tissue Engineering- A Systematic Review of the Literature

Abstract

The term tissue engineering is the technology that combines cells, engineering and biological/synthetic material in order to repair, replace or regenerate biological tissues such as bone, muscle, tendons and cartilage. The major human applications of tissue engineering are: skin, bone, cartilage, corneas, blood vessels, left mainstem bronchus and urinary structures. In this systematic review several criteria were identified as the most desirable characteristics of an ideal scaffold. These state that an ideal scaffolds needs to be biodegradable, possess mechanical strength, be highly porous, biocompatible, non-cytotoxic, non antigentic, stuitable for cell attachment, proliferation and differentiation, flexible and elastic, three dimensional, osteoconductive and support the transport of nutrients and metabolic waste. Subsequently, studies reporting on the various advantages and disadvantages of using collagen based scaffolds in musculoskeletal and cartilage tissue engineering were identified. The purpose of this review is to 1) provide a list of ideal characteristics of a scaffold as identified in the literature 2) identify different types of biological protein-based collagen scaffolds used in musculoskeletal and cartilage tissue engineering 3) assess how many of the criteria each scaffold type meets 4) weigh different scaffolds against each other according to their relative properties and shortcomings. The rationale behind this approach is that the ideal scaffold material has not yet been identified. Hence, this review will define how many of the identified ideal characteristics are fulfilled by natural collagen-based scaffolds and address the shortcomings of its use as found in the literature.

Identification of an easy to use 3D culture model to investigate invasion and anticancer drug response in chondrosarcomas

“…However, they have limitations, including batch-to-batch variation and an incomplete understanding of their impact on cell behavior [31, 32]. In contrast, hydrogels such as alginate present many advantages over bioactive scaffolds due to their inert properties, biocompatible gelation and ease of cell recovery.…”

Bacterial collagen-like proteins that form triple-helical structures

“…They have also been proposed as materials in the emerging area of tissue engineering (Mafi et al 2012). There are opportunities for producing new collagen based products using bacterial collagens, especially if an animal-free system is preferred, but so far there is no commercially available product made from bacterial collagens.…”

Collagen Scaffolds in Bone Sialoprotein‐Mediated Bone Regeneration

“…Mafi and colleagues define the ideal collagen-based scaffold as one which is nontoxic, nonantigenic, three-dimensional, biocompatible, biodegradable, highly porous (allowing cell and nutrient influx and waste material efflux), conducive for cell attachment, proliferation and differentiation, osteoconductive, and mechanically flexible and elastic [24]. …”