title: Hydrogels for central nervous system therapeutic strategies.
abstract: The central nervous system shows a limited regenerative capacity, and injuries or diseases, such as those in the spinal, brain and retina, are a great problem since current therapies seem to be unable to achieve good results in terms of significant functional recovery. Different promising therapies have been suggested, the aim being to restore at least some of the lost functions. The current review deals with the use of hydrogels in developing advanced devices for central nervous system therapeutic strategies. Several approaches, involving cell-based therapy, delivery of bioactive molecules and nanoparticle-based drug delivery, will be first reviewed. Finally, some examples of injectable hydrogels for the delivery of bioactive molecules in central nervous system will be reported, and the key features as well as the basic principles in designing multifunctional devices will be described.
authors.affiliation: Institute of Polymers, Composites and Biomaterials, National Research Council of Italy, Naples, Italy.
authors.forename: Teresa
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Russo
authors.affiliation: Department of Chemistry, Materials and Chemical Engineering "G. Natta", Politecnico di Milano and Unità di Ricerca Consorzio INSTM, Politecnico di Milano, Milan, Italy.
authors.forename: Marta
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Tunesi
authors.affiliation: Department of Chemistry, Materials and Chemical Engineering "G. Natta", Politecnico di Milano and Unità di Ricerca Consorzio INSTM, Politecnico di Milano, Milan, Italy.
authors.forename: Carmen
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Giordano
authors.affiliation: Institute of Polymers, Composites and Biomaterials, National Research Council of Italy, Naples, Italy angloria@unina.it.
authors.forename: Antonio
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Gloria
authors.affiliation: Institute of Polymers, Composites and Biomaterials, National Research Council of Italy, Naples, Italy.
authors.forename: Luigi
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Ambrosio
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D035843:Biomedical Research; D002490:Central Nervous System / Q000293:injuries / Q000502:physiology; D002493:Central Nervous System Diseases / Q000628:therapy*; D016503:Drug Delivery Systems; D006801:Humans; D020100:Hydrogels / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000737:chemistry / Q000627:therapeutic use; D051379:Mice; D009416:Nerve Regeneration / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology
chemical_list: D020100:Hydrogels
keywords: Hydrogels; central nervous system; injectable materials; therapeutic strategies; viscoelastic properties