A review on the application of carbonaceous materials in tissue engineering scaffolds

Tissue engineering, a multidisciplinary concept, has attracted attention of different scientists of different branches including chemistry, materials science, medicine and etc. Even though numerous efforts have been devoted to the subject, but there have been some limitation that nowadays scientists try to address. Lack of mechanical stability, high rate of degradation in vivo, inability to induce vascularization, and lack of biocompatibility are some of drawbacks of polymeric tissue engineering scaffolds. To overcome the as mentioned problems, one solution is to use composite materials to prepare scaffolds. Novel and newly emerging materials including some clays, bioceramics, metal oxides, and carbonaceous materials are at the center of attention. Among all theses, carbonaceous materials are appealing choices, as they are basically formed of carbon element. Emergence of carbonaceous materials including graphene, graphene oxide, carbon nanotubes, functionalized carbon nanotubes, and nanodiamonds has revolutionized different branches of science. Incorporation of these materials into polymeric tissue engineering scaffolds has advantages and disadvantages, from the view point of biocompatibility, biodegradability, mechanical properties, and other features. In this regard, we tried to provide a review focusing on the introduction of this group of materials into polymeric tissue engineering scaffolds and their effect on the properties of scaffolds.

Keywords:

Tissue engineering , Mechanical properties , Carbonaceous materials