Carriers in Cell-Based Therapies for Neurological Disorders

International Journal of Molecular Sciences

Francisca S. Y. Wong²  Barbara P. Chan¹ 

[1] Department of Mechanical Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, China; E-Mail:;Department of Ophthalmology, Li Ka Shing Faculty of Medicine, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, China; E-Mail:

关键词: age-related neurodegeneration;    drug delivery and drug-likeness;    blood-brain barrier;    biomaterials;    cell encapsulation;    microcarriers;    central nervous system injury;    peripheral nervous system;   

DOI  :  10.3390/ijms150610669

来源: mdpi

【 摘 要 】

There is a pressing need for long-term neuroprotective and neuroregenerative therapies to promote full function recovery of injuries in the human nervous system resulting from trauma, stroke or degenerative diseases. Although cell-based therapies are promising in supporting repair and regeneration, direct introduction to the injury site is plagued by problems such as low transplanted cell survival rate, limited graft integration, immunorejection, and tumor formation. Neural tissue engineering offers an integrative and multifaceted approach to tackle these complex neurological disorders. Synergistic therapeutic effects can be obtained from combining customized biomaterial scaffolds with cell-based therapies. Current scaffold-facilitated cell transplantation strategies aim to achieve structural and functional rescue via offering a three-dimensional permissive and instructive environment for sustainable neuroactive factor production for prolonged periods and/or cell replacement at the target site. In this review, we intend to highlight important considerations in biomaterial selection and to review major biodegradable or non-biodegradable scaffolds used for cell transplantation to the central and peripheral nervous system in preclinical and clinical trials. Expanded knowledge in biomaterial properties and their prolonged interaction with transplanted and host cells have greatly expanded the possibilities for designing suitable carrier systems and the potential of cell therapies in the nervous system.

【 授权许可】

CC BY   
© 2014 by the authors; licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland.