The mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) are the fundamental part of bone tissue engineering for the emergence of reconstructive medicine. Bone tissue engineering has recently been considered a promising strategy for treating bone diseases and disorders. The technique needs a scaffold to provide an environment for cell attachment to maintain cell function and a rich source of stem cells combined with appropriate growth factors. MSCs can be isolated from adipose tissue (ASCs), bone marrow (BM-MSCs), or umbilical cord (UC-MSCs). In the present study, the potential of ASCs to stimulate bone formation in composite polymeric scaffolds was discussed and it showed that ASCs have osteogenic ability in vitro. The results also indicated that the ASCs have the potential for rapid growth, easier adipose tissue harvesting with fewer donor site complications and high proliferative capacity. The osteogenic differentiation capacity of ASCs varies due to the culture medium and the addition of factors that can change signaling pathways to increase bone differentiation. Furthermore, gene expression analysis has a significant impact on improving our understanding of the molecular pathways involved in ASCs and, thus, osteogenic differentiation. Adding some drugs, such as dexamethasone, to the biomaterial composite also increases the formation of osteocytes. Combining ASCs with scaffolds synthesized from natural and synthetic polymers seems to be an effective strategy for bone regeneration. Applying exopolysaccharides, such as schizophyllan, chitosan, gelatin, and alginate in composite scaffolds enhances the osteogenesis potential of ASCs in bone tissue regeneration.
Keywords: Adipose tissue; Bone tissue engineering; Mesenchymal stem cells; Osteogenic differentiation; Polymeric scaffolds; stem cells.
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