Tarek Saleh, Lorenzo Caciolli, Giovanni Giuseppe Giobbe, Paolo De Coppi
{"title":"Ex vivo organ engineering using decellularized tissue scaffolds","authors":"Tarek Saleh, Lorenzo Caciolli, Giovanni Giuseppe Giobbe, Paolo De Coppi","doi":"10.1038/s44222-025-00322-5","DOIUrl":null,"url":null,"abstract":"End-stage organ failure requires the transplantation of a new organ. However, the number of patients awaiting donor organs exceeds the number of available organs. To address this organ shortage, solid organs, such as the kidneys, liver, heart and lungs, can be engineered based on decellularized human and non-human tissues. These decellularized scaffolds can then be recellularized with autologous or allogeneic cells and modified to ensure engraftment and function following transplantation. In this Review, we discuss the creation of decellularized neo-solid organs, including animal donor considerations, pre-decellularization processes, decellularization protocols, post-decellularization characterization, sterilization and storage conditions. We highlight various cell seeding and modification strategies and examine bioreactor culture conditions to grow functional solid organs. Finally, we outline mechanisms of transplant-recipient crosstalk and discuss challenges and opportunities for the clinical translation of engineered solid organs. New organs can be engineered based on decellularized human and animal tissues to address the global shortage of donor organs. This Review discusses design principles for the engineering of new organs using decellularized animal-derived tissues, including decellularization, functionalization and characterization protocols.","PeriodicalId":74248,"journal":{"name":"Nature reviews bioengineering","volume":"3 9","pages":"761-774"},"PeriodicalIF":37.6000,"publicationDate":"2025-06-16","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":"0","resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":null,"PeriodicalName":"Nature reviews bioengineering","FirstCategoryId":"1085","ListUrlMain":"https://www.nature.com/articles/s44222-025-00322-5","RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":null,"ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":null,"EPubDate":"","PubModel":"","JCR":"","JCRName":"","Score":null,"Total":0}
引用次数: 0
Abstract
End-stage organ failure requires the transplantation of a new organ. However, the number of patients awaiting donor organs exceeds the number of available organs. To address this organ shortage, solid organs, such as the kidneys, liver, heart and lungs, can be engineered based on decellularized human and non-human tissues. These decellularized scaffolds can then be recellularized with autologous or allogeneic cells and modified to ensure engraftment and function following transplantation. In this Review, we discuss the creation of decellularized neo-solid organs, including animal donor considerations, pre-decellularization processes, decellularization protocols, post-decellularization characterization, sterilization and storage conditions. We highlight various cell seeding and modification strategies and examine bioreactor culture conditions to grow functional solid organs. Finally, we outline mechanisms of transplant-recipient crosstalk and discuss challenges and opportunities for the clinical translation of engineered solid organs. New organs can be engineered based on decellularized human and animal tissues to address the global shortage of donor organs. This Review discusses design principles for the engineering of new organs using decellularized animal-derived tissues, including decellularization, functionalization and characterization protocols.