Decellularized Extracellular Matrix Based Scaffolds for Regenerative Medicine

The extracellular matrix (ECM) is nature’s scaffold, and in recent years, researchers have isolated these scaffolds for tissue engineering applications by removing all of the cellular components, a process called decellularization.  These scaffolds are known to promote cell influx, regeneration, and healing in a variety of tissues, and their degradation products have angiogenic, chemoattractant, and antimicrobial properties, as well as promote cell migration and proliferation. By removal of the cellular antigens, these scaffold are considered biocompatible, and xenogeneic sources can be used. While these scaffolds retain the native ECM structure, they are not amenable to minimally invasive, injectable procedures or for cell culture on defined 2D surfaces and 3D structures.  We have developed a variety of injectable ECM derived materials that self-assemble to form porous, nanofibrous scaffolds once injected in vivo or brought to physiological conditions in vitro.  These materials can also be used as substrate coatings for 2D cell culture.  These ECM based scaffolds have been shown to increase tissue specific differentiation and maturation of a variety of progenitor and stem cells in vitro, and are showing promise in vivo in several tissues including the myocardium, skeletal muscle, and adipose tissue.  This talk will cover the progress with these materials in both in vitro and in vivo stem cell engineering.