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Intervertebral disc regeneration: from the degenerative cascade to molecular therapy and tissue engineering
Author(s) -
Vadalà Gianluca,
Russo Fabrizio,
Di Martino Alberto,
Denaro Vincenzo
Publication year - 2015
Publication title -
journal of tissue engineering and regenerative medicine
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.835
H-Index - 72
eISSN - 1932-7005
pISSN - 1932-6254
DOI - 10.1002/term.1719
Subject(s) - intervertebral disc , regeneration (biology) , medicine , extracellular matrix , degeneration (medical) , tissue engineering , transplantation , regenerative medicine , stem cell , population , bioinformatics , pathology , biomedical engineering , biology , surgery , microbiology and biotechnology , environmental health
Low back pain is one of the major health problems in industrialized countries, as a leading source of disability in the working population. Intervertebral disc degeneration has been identified as its main cause, being a progressive process mainly characterized by alteration of extracellular matrix composition and water content. Many factors are involved in the degenerative cascade, such as anabolism/catabolism imbalance, reduction of nutrition supply and progressive cell loss. Currently available treatments are symptomatic, and surgical procedures consisting of disc removal are often necessary. Recent advances in our understanding of intervertebral disc biology led to an increased interest in the development of novel biological treatments aimed at disc regeneration. Growth factors, gene therapy, stem cell transplantation and biomaterials‐based tissue engineering might support intervertebral disc regeneration by overcoming the limitation of the self‐renewal mechanism. The aim of this paper is to overview the literature discussing the current status of our knowledge from the degenerative cascade of the intervertebral disc to the latest molecular, cell‐based therapies and tissue‐engineering strategies for disc regeneration. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.