Virus-based scaffolds for tissue engineering applications

One of the major research directions of tissue engineering is to develop artificial scaffolds that can mimic extracellular matrix (ECM) and support the growth of functional cells for the repair of damaged tissues and organs. Recently, virus particles have expanded as nanosized building blocks for materials applications. Viruses represent monodispersed supramolecular assemblies with organized three-dimensional architecture, which can be isolated in high yield and purity with batch-to-batch consistency. In addition, virus particles can be re-engineered by chemical and genetic modification to incorporate multivalent functional ligands with high density and ordered arrangement. In this review, we highlight that the self-assembly of the reengineered viruses can form two-dimensional and three-dimensional scaffolds, which can be employed to support cell growth and regulate cellular functions such as adhesion, spreading and proliferation. In particular, the application of virus-based scaffolds for directed differentiation of pluripotent stem cells for bone and neural regeneration is discussed. Finally, the in vivo behaviors of virus nanoparticles will be discussed for the consideration of tissue engineering applications. WIREs Nanomed Nanobiotechnol 2015, 7:534-547. doi: 10.1002/wnan.1327 For further resources related to this article, please visit the