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Review
. 2023 Sep 1:22:100790.
doi: 10.1016/j.mtbio.2023.100790. eCollection 2023 Oct.

Biological importance of human amniotic membrane in tissue engineering and regenerative medicine

Zeming Hu  1 , Yang Luo  1 , Renhao Ni  1 , Yiwei Hu  1 , Fang Yang  1 , Tianyu Du  1 , Yabin Zhu  1
Affiliations
Review

Biological importance of human amniotic membrane in tissue engineering and regenerative medicine

Zeming Hu et al. Mater Today Bio. .

Abstract

The human amniotic membrane (hAM) is the innermost layer of the placenta. Its distinctive structure and the biological and physical characteristics make it a highly biocompatible material in a variety of regenerative medicine applications. It also acts as a supply of bioactive factors and cells, which indicate the advantages over other tissues. In this review, we firstly discussed the biological properties of hAM-derived cells in vivo or in vitro, along with their stemness of markers, pointing out a promising source of stem cells for regenerative medicine. Then, we systematically summarized current knowledge on the collection, preparation, preservation, and decellularization of hAM, as well as their characteristics helping to improve the understanding of applications in tissue engineering. Finally, we highlighted the recent advances in which hAM has undergone additional modifications to achieve an adequate perspective of regenerative medicine applications. More investigations are required in utilizing appropriate modifications to enhance the therapeutic effectiveness of hAM in the future.

Keywords: Human amniotic membrane; Modifications; Properties; Regenerative medicine; Tissue engineering.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper.

Figures

Image 1
Graphical abstract
Fig. 1
Fig. 1
Human amniotic membrane. (A) Schematic illustration of hAM anatomy: an epithelial layer, the basement membrane, a compact layer, a fibroblast layer, and a spongy outer layer. The components of hAM fulfill the requirements of tissue engineering, which contains cells, growth factors, and scaffolds. (B) A timeline of hAM for clinical applications over the past century.
Fig. 2
Fig. 2
The biological effects of hAM-derived AECs and AMSCs in various disease models. AECs and AMSCs display similar therapeutic efficiency in animal models of reproductive system disease, liver disease, myocardial infarction, corneal injury, hindlimb ischemia, and skin injury.
Fig. 3
Fig. 3
Schematic representation of distinct features of hAM. The features include antimicrobial and antiviral effects, anti-fibrotic or anti-scarring activity, immunomodulatory function with low immunogenicity, and pro- or anti-angiogenesis effect.
Fig. 4
Fig. 4
Therapeutic effects of hAM composites in multiple preclinical studies. Modifications based on hAM have potential in the eyes, skin, abdominal wall, cardiovascular system, orthopedics, and some other organs.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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