title: Tissue engineering--current challenges and expanding opportunities.
abstract: Tissue engineering can be used to restore, maintain, or enhance tissues and organs. The potential impact of this field, however, is far broader-in the future, engineered tissues could reduce the need for organ replacement, and could greatly accelerate the development of new drugs that may cure patients, eliminating the need for organ transplants altogether.
authors.affiliation: Department of Chemical Engineering, Division of Bioengineering and Environmental Health, and Biotechnology Process Engineering Center, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA. griff@mit.edu
authors.forename: Linda G
authors.initials: LG
authors.lastname: Griffith
authors.forename: Gail
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Naughton
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001672:Biocompatible Materials; D019149:Bioreactors; D001808:Blood Vessels / Q000502:physiology; D018929:Cell Culture Techniques; D002454:Cell Differentiation; D046508:Culture Techniques; D004622:Embryo, Mammalian / Q000166:cytology; D006801:Humans; D008954:Models, Biological; D018919:Neovascularization, Physiologic; D016038:Skin Transplantation; D013234:Stem Cells / Q000502:physiology; D023822:Tissue Engineering / Q000295:instrumentation / Q000379:methods
chemical_list: D001672:Biocompatible Materials