Nanocellulose based hydrogel or aerogel scaffolds for tissue engineering

Some structures and properties of hydrogel or aerogel tissue engineering scaffolds can be regulated by adding nanocellulose due to its biocompatibility, biodegradability, hydrophilic and excellent mechanical properties. In this review, we briefly introduce the category, characteristics and preparation methods of nanocellulose. Then we cover the most recent work on nanocellulose based hydrogel or aerogel scaffolds, and present an in-depth discussion of the roles of nanocellulose in skin, bone, vessel, cartilage, soft tissue, muscle, heart and tooth hydrogel or aerogel scaffolds. The addition of nanocellulose not only has a great influence on the Young’s modulus, compressive Young’s modulus, swelling rate, gel time, surface morphology, porosity, the antibacterial properties of scaffolds, but also can regulate the balances among these properties in order to promote the proliferation rates of cells and the biorecognition sites of the scaffolds. Finally, some challenges of nanocellulose based scaffolds are also prospected. We anticipate that the review supplies some guides for nanocellulose applied in scaffolds.

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