Controlled Release Strategies in Tissue Engineering

The controlled release of biological factors is an essential component of the many aspects of tissue engineering. The primary objective of the controlled release of cell signaling molecules is to present desired biological factors to the targeted cells at an optimal concentration for an optimal duration of time. Over the previous decades, engineers have designed a variety of systems to precisely control the release rates of various biomolecules for many tissue engineering applications. This chapter describes the prominent methods that have been used to entrap bioactive factors within biomaterials to control the presentation and delivery of these factors.