Among the various possible embodiements of Advanced Therapies and in particular of
Tissue Engineering the use of temporary scaffolds to regenerate tissue defects is one of the key
issues. The scaffolds should be specifically designed to create environments that promote tissue
development and not merely to support the maintenance of communities of cells. To achieve that
goal, highly functional scaffolds may combine specific morphologies and surface chemistry with the
local release of bioactive agents.
Many biomaterials have been proposed to produce scaffolds aiming the regeneration of a
wealth of human tissues. We have a particular interest in developing systems based in biodegradable
polymers. Those demanding applications require a combination of mechanical properties,
processability, cell-friendly surfaces and tunable biodegradability that need to be tailored for the
specific application envisioned. Those biomaterials are usually processed by different routes into
devices with wide range of morphologies such as biodegradable fibers and meshes, films or particles
and adaptable to different biomedical applications.
In our approach, we combine the temporary scaffolds populated with therapeutically
relevant communities of cells to generate a hybrid implant. For that we have explored different
sources of adult and also embryonic stem cells. We are exploring the use of adult MSCs, namely
obtained from the bone marrow for the development autologous-based therapies. We also develop
strategies based in extra-embryonic tissues, such as the perivascular region of the umbilical cord
(Wharton´s Jelly).
This talk will review our latest developments of natural-based biomaterials and scaffolds in
combination with stem cells for advanced biomedical devices and therapies.