The central nervous system has a limited capacity to regenerate, and thus, traumatic injuries or diseases often have devastating consequences. Therefore, there is a distinct need to develop alternative treatments that can achieve functional recovery without side-effects currently observed with some pharmacological treatments. Combining biomaterials with pluripotent stem cells (either embryonic or induced), has the potential to revolutionize the treatment of neurodegenerative diseases and traumatic injuries. Biomaterials can mimic the extracellular matrix, present a myriad of relevant biochemical cues through rational design or further functionalization. Biomaterials such as nanofibres, hydrogels (including self-assembling peptide (SAP) hydrogels) can provide a superior cell culture environment. When these materials are then combined with pluripotent stem cells more accurate drug screening and disease modelling could be developed, and the generation of large numbers of cells with the appropriate phenotype can be achieved, for subsequent use in vitro. Biomaterials have also been shown to support endogenous cell growth after implantation, and in particular, hydrogels and SAPs have effectively acted as cell delivery vehicles, increasing cell survival after transplantation. Few studies are yet to fully exploit the combination of pluripotent stem cells and innovative biomaterials, however, initial studies with neural stem cells, for example, are promising, and hence, such a combination for use in vitro and in vivo is an exciting new direction for the field of neural regeneration.
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