Current advances of biodegradable and biocompatible nanofiber-based materials for tissue engineering and drug delivery
摘要
Nanoscale fibrous materials of natural and synthetic polymers with high porosity, flexibility, biodegradability, biocompatibility, and functionality have garnered a lot of scientific attention and present exciting opportunities for regenerative medicine and drug delivery. The potential of developing scaffolds and drug delivery systems that can overcome current barriers in the fields of medicine and pharmacy is greatly expanded by the transformation and incorporation of nanofibers into free-standing nanomembranes, 3D scaffolds, actuators, transducers or sensors, which permits localized stimulation of target tissues, promotes proliferation, and enables controlled drug release over time. This review emphasizes innovative materials, fabrication techniques, and biomedical uses of synthetic and natural nanofiber-based biomaterials. Different from the previous reviews in the field, this work at best includes literature within the last 8 years to cover new exciting functional nanofibers (such as biodegradable electroactive nanofibers) and unique medical applications of these nanofiber materials. We highlight the use of a range of recent fabrication techniques (electrospinning, phase separation, and molecular self-assembly) to enhance the physicochemical and mechanical properties as well as (bio)compatibility of nanofibers for advanced drug delivery systems and tissue engineering applications. At the end, this article provides a future perspective on the advancement of biodegradable and biocompatible nanofibers for the fields of tissue engineering and drug delivery.
Graphical abstract