4. Conclusions

Tissue engineering (TE) is a rapidly growing discipline which integrates the basic principles of biology, engineering and material science with the aim to repair or regenerate damaged tissues. To this scope, a cell-construct is engineered in vitro by using a porous 3D material as cell culture support, commonly referred to as scaffold. The role of the scaffold is to act as a temporary template, guiding cell organization, growth and differentiation and providing a structural stability and a 3D environment where cells can produce new biological tissue. Therefore, the scaffold must be designed to be bioresorbed in the organism and replaced by new tissue produced by cells. The obtainment of a successful engineered tissue encompasses the optimization of several critical elements (e.g. cell type, scaffold material and 3D structure, cell culture conditions, etc.) and an effective multidisciplinary approach involving not only biological and medical expertises but also competences in engineering, chemistry and materials science is imperative in this context.