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Review
. 2020 Jan 8;12(1):161.
doi: 10.3390/polym12010161.

Piezoelectric Scaffolds as Smart Materials for Neural Tissue Engineering

Angelika Zaszczynska  1 , Paweł Sajkiewicz  1 , Arkadiusz Gradys  1
Affiliations
Review

Piezoelectric Scaffolds as Smart Materials for Neural Tissue Engineering

Angelika Zaszczynska et al. Polymers (Basel). .

Abstract

Injury to the central or peripheral nervous systems leads to the loss of cognitive and/or sensorimotor capabilities, which still lacks an effective treatment. Tissue engineering in the post-injury brain represents a promising option for cellular replacement and rescue, providing a cell scaffold for either transplanted or resident cells. Tissue engineering relies on scaffolds for supporting cell differentiation and growth with recent emphasis on stimuli responsive scaffolds, sometimes called smart scaffolds. One of the representatives of this material group is piezoelectric scaffolds, being able to generate electrical charges under mechanical stimulation, which creates a real prospect for using such scaffolds in non-invasive therapy of neural tissue. This paper summarizes the recent knowledge on piezoelectric materials used for tissue engineering, especially neural tissue engineering. The most used materials for tissue engineering strategies are reported together with the main achievements, challenges, and future needs for research and actual therapies. This review provides thus a compilation of the most relevant results and strategies and serves as a starting point for novel research pathways in the most relevant and challenging open questions.

Keywords: neural tissue engineering; piezoelectric scaffolds; polymers; smart materials.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Various mechanical stimuli exerted on the cell induce changes in plasma membrane tension, eliciting piezo-channel openings (adapted from [59]).
Figure 2
Figure 2
Classification of the nervous system.
Figure 3
Figure 3
Schematic illustration of the basic units of the nervous tissue: (A) neuron and (B) neuroglia.
Figure 4
Figure 4
Potential difference in neural transmission as a function of time (adapted from [69]).
Figure 5
Figure 5
Representative scheme of tissue regeneration in response to the mechanical and electrical stimulation on the piezoelectric scaffold.
Figure 6
Figure 6
Scheme of permanent polarization in the α-helix.
Figure 7
Figure 7
Definition of the piezoelectric coefficients (adapted from [91]).
Figure 8
Figure 8
Structures of alpha and beta PVDF.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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