AUTHOR=Song Shaochen , Wang Xuejie , Wang Tiejun , Yu Qinghua , Hou Zheyu , Zhu Zhe , Li Rui 

TITLE=Additive Manufacturing of Nerve Guidance Conduits for Regeneration of Injured Peripheral Nerves

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Bioengineering and Biotechnology

VOLUME=Volume 8 - 2020

YEAR=2020

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/bioengineering-and-biotechnology/articles/10.3389/fbioe.2020.590596

DOI=10.3389/fbioe.2020.590596

ISSN=2296-4185

ABSTRACT=Repair of peripheral-nerve injuries (PNIs) with long defects is challenging. Therapeutics are being developed for bridging of nerve gaps and full recovery of nerve function. Nerve autografting is first-line treatment of PNIs but can result in loss of function at the donor site, neuroma formation, and prolonged operative time. Nerve guidance conduits (NGCs) can provide a confined space for regenerated axons and create a high-concentration microenvironment for nerve growth factors. Additive manufacturing of NGCs can offer opportunities for peripheral-nerve regeneration via production of anatomically accurate geometries, spatial distributions of cellular components, and incorporation of therapeutic biomolecules. This review examines recent advances in additive manufacture of NGCs for PNIs as well as insight into how these approaches could be improved in future studies.