Natural polysaccharides for growth factors delivery

Natural polysaccharides have been extensively utilized in nutrition and pharmaceutical applications for several decades. A significant number of research has been performed on polysaccharides as a drug delivery system with aim to restore or repair defective tissues. Natural polysaccharides (chitosan, agarose, alginate, carrageenan, fucoidan, cellulose, hyaluronic acid, and ulvan) are proven to be used as drug delivery systems. In this chapter, we discuss the function of natural polysaccharides and their applications in growth factor delivery such as BMP-2, VEGF, PRP, FGF, etc. From the scientific results, it has been concluded that natural polysaccharides significantly hold the growth factors and release it in a sustainable manner enhancing tissue growth. In addition to this, most of the natural polysaccharides are biocompatible, biodegradable, and nontoxic to cells. Natural polysaccharides also act as extracellular matrix for regeneration of skin and bone tissues. Overall, proper mixture of natural polysaccharides with growth factors provides several advantages in biomedical applications