Chitosan-Based Gels for Regenerative Medicine Applications

The tissue repair and regeneration process often require implants that can help in the healing of damaged tissue. A naturally obtained polysaccharide chitosan has properties like processability, biocompatibility, biodegradability, and nonimmunogenicity. The presence of an amino group and hydroxyl group provides the scope of many functionalizations to the chitosan. Chitosan gels (nano, micro, and macro) can be prepared either by physical, ionic interactions, or chemical methods. Poor solubility of chitosan is sometimes held responsible for its limited application. Many strategies have been adapted for the fabrication of gels made up of chitosan and its derivative to overcome this limitation. Chitosan gels have been explored by researchers for several applications in the arena of regenerative medicines. The gels of chitosan are having pH sensitivity, temperature sensitivity, and ion-sensitivity behavior. They have been used as a carrier for bioactive molecules, proteins, peptides, and living cells which can aid in the healing of damaged tissues and have been successfully tested in the in vitro and in vivo models. Chitosan gels have the potential to provide an appropriate microenvironment for the living cell to grow and proliferate. A vast number of chitosanbased gels, viz., nanogels, microgels, and macrogels, and their gelation mechanism have been discovered for bone, cartilage, skin, tissue regeneration, which has been discussed in detail in the chapter.