title: Amniotic fluid stem cells: an ideal resource for therapeutic application in bone tissue engineering.
abstract: Skeletal diseases, both degenerative and secondary to trauma, infections or tumors, represent an ideal target for regenerative medicine and in the last years, stem cells have been considered as good candidates for in vitro and in vivo bone regeneration. To date, several stem cell sources, such as adult mesenchymal stem cells, embryonic stem cells (ESCs) and induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs), have shown significant osteogenic potential.
  
  
  
  In this narrative review, we analyze the possible advantages of the use of AFSCs in the treatment of skeletal diseases, especially through the application of tissue engineering and biomaterials.
  
  
  
  Among the different sources of stem cells, great attention has been recently devoted to amniotic fluid-derived stem cells (AFSC) characterized by high renewal capacity and ability to differentiate along several different lineages.
  
  
  
  Due to these features, AFSCs represent an interesting model for regenerative medicine, also considering their low immunogenicity and the absence of tumor formation after transplantation in nude mice.
authors.affiliation: Orthopaedic and Traumatology Division, Department of Medicine and Science of Aging, University G. d'Annunzio, Chieti-Pescara, Chieti, Italy. matteogue@hotmail.com.
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Pantalone
authors.forename: I
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Antonucci
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Guelfi
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Pantalone
authors.forename: F G
authors.initials: FG
authors.lastname: Usuelli
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Stuppia
authors.forename: V
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Salini
mesh_terms: D000653:Amniotic Fluid / Q000166:cytology*; D000818:Animals; D001861:Bone Regeneration; D001842:Bone and Bones / Q000166:cytology; D002454:Cell Differentiation; D002471:Cell Transformation, Neoplastic; D053595:Embryonic Stem Cells; D006801:Humans; D051379:Mice; D008819:Mice, Nude; D044968:Regenerative Medicine; D013234:Stem Cells; D023822:Tissue Engineering