title: The design of scaffolds for use in tissue engineering. Part I. Traditional factors.
abstract: In tissue engineering, a highly porous artificial extracellular matrix or scaffold is required to accommodate mammalian cells and guide their growth and tissue regeneration in three dimensions. However, existing three-dimensional scaffolds for tissue engineering proved less than ideal for actual applications, not only because they lack mechanical strength, but they also do not guarantee interconnected channels. In this paper, the authors analyze the factors necessary to enhance the design and manufacture of scaffolds for use in tissue engineering in terms of materials, structure, and mechanical properties and review the traditional scaffold fabrication methods. Advantages and limitations of these traditional methods are also discussed.
authors.affiliation: Design Research Center, School of Mechanical and Production Engineering, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore.
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Yang
authors.forename: K F
authors.initials: KF
authors.lastname: Leong
authors.forename: Z
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Du
authors.forename: C K
authors.initials: CK
authors.lastname: Chua
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001672:Biocompatible Materials; D005109:Extracellular Matrix; D006801:Humans; D023822:Tissue Engineering / Q000379:methods
chemical_list: D001672:Biocompatible Materials