Modelling bone tissue engineering. Towards an understanding of the role of scaffold design parameters

Tissue engineering emerged in the beginning of 90’s as a new paradigm in medicine and life sciences. A number of successful results have been reported although the clinical practice has not been reached so far. One of the problems encountered in this methodology is the coordination among the different biophysical fields involved and the uncertain behaviour of a specific cell carrier, i.e,

scaffolds

in each application. Moreover, the role of the scaffold design in tissue regeneration is poorly understood and new protocols have to be tested over different tissues. In order to advance in the knowledge of the scaffold behaviour towards its functionality and to reduce animal experimentation, computer simulation may serve as a useful platform for scaffold design, once the models are sufficiently validated. In this framework, the potential of numerical simulation, based on a multiscale and multiphysic approach, is highlighted in this work. Furthermore, the role of scaffold microstructural anisotropy in bone tissue regeneration is analyzed using this approach.