Thermoreversible hydrogel scaffolds for articular cartilage engineering

Abstract: Articular cartilage has limited potential for re-pair. Current clinical treatments for articular cartilage dam-age often result in fibrocartilage and are associated with joint pain and stiffness. To address these concerns, researchers have turned to the engineering of cartilage grafts. Tissue engineering, an emerging field for the functional restoration of articular cartilage and other tissues, is based on the utili-zation of morphogens, scaffolds, and responding progeni-tor/stem cells. Because articular cartilage is a water-laden tissue and contains within its matrix hydrophilic proteogly-cans, an engineered cartilage graft may be based on syn-thetic hydrogels to mimic these properties. To this end, we have developed a polymer system based on the hydrophilic copolymer poly(propylene fumarate-co-ethylene glycol) [P(PF-co-EG)]. Solutions of this polymer are liquid belo