Figure 1.

Organ-level tissue engineering paradigm. The basic strategy used by scientists to bioengineer tissues has changed little from the very beginnings of the field of tissue engineering. A biomaterial is utilized as a structural and mechanical scaffold into which a specific cell population is incorporated. Growth factors and other bioactive molecules can be added to the construct. After a period of maturation either in vivo or in a bioreactor, the anticipated end product is a tissue-engineered organ that serves as a functional replacement for damaged or missing tissue.