Bioreactors for tissue engineering.
Bioreactors are essential in tissue engineering, not only because they provide an in vitro environment mimicking in vivo conditions for the growth of tissue substitutes, but also because they enable systematic studies of the responses of living tissues to various mechanical and biochemical cues. The basic principles of bioreactor design are reviewed, the bioreactors commonly used for the tissue engineering of cartilage, bone and cardiovascular systems are assessed in terms of their performance and usefulness. Several novel bioreactor types are also reviewed.
Chen
Huang-Chi
HC
Department of Chemical Engineering, National Tsing Hua University, Hsinchu 300, Taiwan.
Hu
Yu-Chen
YC
D000818:Animals; D019149:Bioreactors; D002356:Cartilage / Q000254:growth & development; D018929:Cell Culture Techniques; D004528:Egg Shell; D006801:Humans; D010477:Perfusion; D011673:Pulsatile Flow; D012399:Rotation; D033081:Shear Strength; D023822:Tissue Engineering / Q000295:instrumentation* / Q000379:methods