Injectable Polymeric Hydrogels for Biomedical Appl ications

Polymeric biomaterials have been used extensively in medical, personal care, and other applications. The book will emphasize the design of polymers and their potential use in medicine and specifically those designed as scaffolds for use in tissue engineering, regenerative medicine, drug delivery, and immunotherapy. The author draws on his contribution to research in the biomedical field which includes: synthesis, modification, and characterization of naturally- derived and synthetic polymers, biomaterials design-incorporation of the appropriate chemical, physical, and mechanical/structural properties to guide cells and tissue organization; cell/scaffold integration-inclusion into the biomaterial scaffold of either cells for transplantation or biomolecules to attract cells, including stem cells, from the host to promote integration with the tissue after implantation, and biomolecules delivery-inclusion of growth factors and/or small molecules or peptides that promote cell survival, cell recruitment and stimulation, cell reprogrammation, and tissue regeneration.