Electrophoretic deposition is getting more attention in recent years. It is cost-effective and can be applied in many ways to produce a variety of composites. In the following, we present an article highlighting the influence of initial concentrations and process parameters on the deposition of chitosan-hydroxyapatite structures. Furthermore, the bonds and interactions in the deposited structures were also investigated.
Stem cell therapy has received a lot of attention in recent years and has created new ways of treating the various conditions and ailments. The stem cells can differentiate into a wide variety of cell types and can positively influence inflammatory reactions. Clinical applications of stem cells are still limited, among others due to the high concentrations of ROS (reactive oxygen species) in the environment of the inflammation which limits retention of the transplanted stem cells.
There are various fields of application for chitosan-based hydrogels. Hydrogels can be manufactured by chemical or physical cross-linking. The hydrophilic groups of chitosan enable the absorption of water. Chitosan hydrogels are suitable as scaffold materials for tissue engineering by mimicking the extracellular matrix. Additionally an application as drug delivery system for drugs, protein or growth factors is also possible.[1] In the following, we briefly present a number of publications about the development and application of chitosan hydrogels using chitosans by HMC.
The development of the chitosan research and chitosan application is steadily proceeding. More than 2100 reports about chitosan and chitosan derivatives were published in 2015. The highest number of publications was performed by the leading nations China (589), India (250), the United States (214) and the European area as a whole.
166 articles about chitosan were published in May 2015. In the rank of nations scientists from China gained with 39 publications the leading position, followed by India (16), the US (12) and Italy (11). The research priorities focused on nanoparticles, evaluation studies and pharmaceutical preparations.
Dr. Thomas Freier
Tissue engineering is a rapidly growing interdisciplinary field of research focused on the development of vital autologous tissue through the use of a combination of biomaterials, cells, and bioactive molecules, for the purposes of repairing damaged or diseased tissue and organs. The future tissue engineering market potential has been estimated at 70 billion Euro. Due to its biocompatibility and biodegradability, together with its specific interactions with components of the extracellular matrix and growth factors, chitosan has emerged as exceptionally promising material for various tissue engineering applications, including skin, nerve, bone, and cartilage repair applications.
