CONTROLLED RELEASE
It is being realized that growth factors are becoming useful in tissue engineering applications to be able to form structures compositionally and biologically similar to native tissues. The usefulness of growth factors in tissue repair/regeneration relies on temporal control of the availability of these molecules to cells.
This is, generally, achieved by adding them into the cell culture media exogenously. Alternatively and more wisely, they can be incorporated into the carriers and be made available to cells in desired dosages through their controlled release into the environment during cell culture. In this context, incorporation of biologically active molecules into scaffolds/carriers to make them available to cells at desired concentrations and locations is imperative for improved efficacy. Figure 1, below, depicts the controlled release of transforming growth factor beta 3 (TGF-β3) from poly(lactide-co-glycolide) (PLGA) nanofiber meshes.
Modeling the release kinetics of growth factors from various geometries is also important for the prediction of long-term availability of active molecules at appropriate doses. A two-phased approach developed for the prediction of controlled release behavior of TGF-β3 is provided in Figure 1 above.
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Figure 1. Controlled release of TGF-β3 from electrospun PLGA meshes. (Erisken et al. Annual Meeting of BMES, 2011). |
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Cevat Erisken, Ph.D. |
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TOBB University of Economics and Technology, Biomedical Engineering Department |
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TOBB University of Economics and Technology |
