[The research progress in ligament tissue engineering].

Abstract

Ligament injury always has an unsatisfied outcome because of the poor blood supply and scar tissue formation. This may result in severe joint dysfunction. Tissue engineering, as a most prospective field, may provide an effective approach for the treatment of ligament injury. This paper has reviewed some recently published articles focusing on the sources of seed cells in ligament tissue engineering, application of growth factors, screening of scaffold materials with specific mechanical and biodegradable properties, and interaction between cells and scaffold materials. At present, what should be extensively studied are scaffolds with specific mechanical and biodegradable properties, and bioreactors providing three-dimensional culture microenvironment mimic in vivo.