Reinforcing materials for polymeric tissue engineering scaffolds: A review.

Final purpose of tissue engineering is to regenerate or repair damaged tissues or organs. Desired repair efficacy necessitates proper physicochemical performances of scaffolds, among which adequate mechanical properties are crucial. Therefore, reinforcing tissue engineering scaffolds has been a hot research trend in recent years. In this regard, the use of some biomaterials as reinforcing materials is a longstanding area of interest. This article introduces the most popular reinforcing materials and focuses on recent advances in the use of these materials for reinforcing mechanical properties of tissue engineering scaffolds. A classification based on materials nature, for example, bioceramics, clays, carbon-based materials, and metal oxides, is provided, followed by their effects on scaffolds properties. © 2018 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Biomed Mater Res B Part B: Appl Biomater, 2018.