A survey of methods for the evaluation of tissue engineering scaffold permeability.
Ann Biomed Eng
; 41(10): 2027-41, 2013 Oct.
Article
en En
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-23612914
ABSTRACT
The performance of porous scaffolds for tissue engineering (TE) applications is evaluated, in general, in terms of porosity, pore size and distribution, and pore tortuosity. These descriptors are often confounding when they are applied to characterize transport phenomena within porous scaffolds. On the contrary, permeability is a more effective parameter in (1) estimating mass and species transport through the scaffold and (2) describing its topological features, thus allowing a better evaluation of the overall scaffold performance. However, the evaluation of TE scaffold permeability suffers of a lack of uniformity and standards in measurement and testing procedures which makes the comparison of results obtained in different laboratories unfeasible. In this review paper we summarize the most important features influencing TE scaffold permeability, linking them to the theoretical background. An overview of methods applied for TE scaffold permeability evaluation is given, presenting experimental test benches and computational methods applied (1) to integrate experimental measurements and (2) to support the TE scaffold design process. Both experimental and computational limitations in the permeability evaluation process are also discussed.
Texto completo:
1
Colección:
01-internacional
Base de datos:
MEDLINE
Asunto principal:
Ingeniería de Tejidos
/
Andamios del Tejido
/
Modelos Teóricos
Límite:
Animals
/
Humans
Idioma:
En
Revista:
Ann Biomed Eng
Año:
2013
Tipo del documento:
Article
País de afiliación:
Italia