Recent Advances in the Application of Two-Dimensional Nanomaterials for Neural Tissue Engineering and Regeneration

Abstract

The complexity of the nervous system structure and function, and its slow regeneration rate, makes it more difficult to treat compared to other tissues in the human body when an injury occurs. Moreover, the current therapeutic approaches including the use of autografts, allografts, and pharmacological agents have several drawbacks and can not fully restore nervous system injuries. Recently, nanotechnology and tissue engineering approaches have attracted many researchers to guide tissue regeneration in an effective manner. Owing to their remarkable physicochemical and biological properties, two-dimensional (2D) nanomaterials have been extensively studied in the tissue engineering and regenerative medicine field. The great conductivity of these materials makes them a promising candidate for the development of novel scaffolds for neural tissue engineering application. Moreover, the high loading capacity of 2D nanomaterials also has attracted many researchers to utilize them as a drug/gene delivery method to treat various devastating nervous system disorders. This review will first introduce the fundamental physicochemical properties of 2D nanomaterials used in biomedicine and the supporting biological properties of 2D nanomaterials for inducing neuroregeneration, including their biocompatibility on neural cells, the ability to promote the neural differentiation of stem cells, and their immunomodulatory properties which are beneficial for alleviating chronic inflammation at the site of the nervous system injury. It also discusses various types of 2D nanomaterials-based scaffolds for neural tissue engineering applications. Then, the latest progress on the use of 2D nanomaterials for nervous system disorder treatment is summarized. Finally, a discussion of the challenges and prospects of 2D nanomaterials-based applications in neural tissue engineering is provided.

Progress in the Development of Graphene-Based Biomaterials for Tissue Engineering and Regeneration

“…The nervous system maintains body balance by controlling and regulating the different activities of organs [ 101 ]. It is divided into the central nervous system (CNS) and the peripheral nervous system (PNS) [ 102 ]. The CNS is made up of the brain and spinal cord, while the PNS is made up of motor neurons and sensory neurons that can transmit signals between the CNS and the rest of the body [ 103 ].CNS damage includes traumatic injuries (such as falls, car accidents and attacks) or non-traumatic injuries (such as neurodegenerative diseases, strokes and brain tumors) [ 104 ].…”

Recent advances and trends in the applications of MXene nanomaterials for tissue engineering and regeneration

“…The traditional method of treating damaged tissue is organ transplantation, including autograft, and allograft. However, autograft is not only expensive but also risky, which is usually accompanied by side effects such as infection, inflammation and chronic pain; Allograft is limited by the lack of donor organs and may cause serious immune response 1–3 . The emergence of tissue engineering and regenerative medicine has overcome these problems 4 .…”

New Polymeric Composites Based on Two-Dimensional Nanomaterials for Biomedical Applications

“…After the upsurge of graphene, one of the most studied 2D nanomaterials for biomedical applications, new and emerging two-dimensional nanomaterials (2DnMat) are becoming part of a fast-growing platform aimed at their research and characterization [ 1 , 2 , 3 , 4 , 5 ]. These new materials succinctly comprise transition metal dichalcogenides (TMDs), transition metal oxides (TMOs), transition metal carbides, nitrides and carbonitrides (MXenes), black phosphorus (BP), layered double hydroxides (LDHs), 2D metal-organic frameworks (MOFs), nanoclay, hexagonal boron nitride (hBN), among others [ 6 , 7 ], as displayed in Figure 1 .…”