Author/Editor     Godier, Amandine F; Marolt, Darja; Gerecht, Sharon; Tajnšek, Urška; Martens, Timothy P; Vunjak-Novakovič, Gordana
Title     Engineered microenvironments for human stem cells
Type     članek
Source     Birth Defects Research (Part C)
Vol. and No.     Letnik 84, št. 4
Publication year     2008
Volume     str. 335-47
Language     eng
Abstract     Regulation of cell differentiation and assembly remains a fundamental question in developmental biology. During development, tissues emerge from coordinated sequences of the renewal, differentiation, and assembly of stem cells. Likewise, regeneration of an adult tissue is driven by the migration and differentiation of repair cells. The fields of stem cells and regenerative medicine are starting to realize how important is the entire context of the cell environment, with the presence of other cells, three-dimensional matrices, and sequences of molecular and physical morphogens. The premise is that to unlock the full potential of stem cells, at least some aspects of the dynamic environments normally present in vivo need to be reconstructed in experimental systems used in vitro. We review here some recent work that utilized engineered environments for guiding the embryonic and adult human stem cells, and focus on vasculogenesis as a critical and universally important aspect of tissue development and regeneration.
Descriptors     STEM CELLS
CULTURE MEDIA
ANGIOGENESIS FACTOR
BIOMEDICAL ENGINEERING
CELL DIFFERENTIATION
REGENERATION