Commercializing Electrospun Scaffolds for Pluripotent Stem Cell-based Tissue Engineering Applications

Abstract

Abstract Tissue engineering, the process of combining bioactive scaffolds often with cells to produce replacements for damaged organs, represents an enormous market opportunity. This review critically evaluates the commercialization potential of electrospun scaffolds for applications in stem cell biology, including tissue engineering. First, it provides an overview of pluripotent stem cells (PSCs) and their defining properties, pluripotency and the ability to self-renew. These cells serve as an important tool for engineering tissues, including for clinical applications. Next, we review the technique of electrospinning and its promise for fabricating cell culture substrates and scaffolds for directing tissue formation from stem cells and compare these scaffolds to existing technologies, such as hydrogels. We address the associated market for electrospun scaffolds for PSCs and its potential for growth along with highlighting the importance of 3D cell culture substrates for PSCs by analyzing the net capital invested in this market and the associated growth rate. This review finishes by detailing the current state of commercializing electrospun scaffolds along with pathways for translating these scaffolds from research laboratories into successful start-up companies and the associated challenges with this process.