How cells and biomaterials from natural origin are revolutionizing tissue engineering and regenerative medicine

Mano, João F.

Publicação

How cells and biomaterials from natural origin are revolutionizing tissue engineering and regenerative medicine

2026-02-12Texto

datacite.subject.fos	Engenharia e Tecnologia::Engenharia Médica
dc.contributor.author	Mano, João F.
dc.contributor.editor	Academia das Ciências de Lisboa
dc.date.accessioned	2026-02-12T11:17:22Z
dc.date.available	2026-02-12T11:17:22Z
dc.date.issued	2026-02-12
dc.description.abstract	Tissue engineering and regenerative medicine aim to restore damaged tissues by combining human cells with biomaterials that provide structure and biological cues. After decades of progress from early scaffold-based approaches to today’s biofabrication methods, the field is moving toward therapies that are more precise, more patient-specific, and more biologically faithful. This article presents the key ingredients required to engineer tissues (cells, matrices, biochemical signals and culture conditions) and why biomaterials are central to success. Emphasis is placed on polymers of natural origin, including polysaccharides and proteins sourced from plants, animals and especially the marine environment (e.g., alginate, carrageenans and chitosan), as well as human-derived materials obtained from blood fractions (platelet lysate) and perinatal tissues (amnion, chorion, umbilical cord, placenta). We describe how these macromolecules can be processed into porous scaffolds or, increasingly, into hydrogels-water-rich macromolecular networks that mimic the extracellular matrix. By adding photocrosslinkable groups, natural polymers can be solidified with light, enabling rapid gelation, spatial patterning and 3D bioprinting of complex constructs. We introduce bottom-up tissue engineering, where small cell-laden building blocks assemble into hierarchical tissues, and show how the same technologies used to build healthy tissues can also create 3D disease models for drug testing and precision medicine. Finally, we highlight emerging applications beyond healthcare, including soft biohybrid robotics and cultivated meat.	eng
dc.identifier.doi	https://doi.org/10.58164/xfqv-ek28
dc.identifier.uri	http://hdl.handle.net/10400.26/61677
dc.language.iso	eng
dc.peerreviewed	n/a
dc.rights.uri	N/A
dc.title	How cells and biomaterials from natural origin are revolutionizing tissue engineering and regenerative medicine	por
dc.type	text
dspace.entity.type	Publication
oaire.citation.startPage	14
oaire.version	http://purl.org/coar/version/c_970fb48d4fbd8a85