ABSTRACT

Tissue engineering in the nervous system facilitates the controlled application and/or organization of neural cells to perform appropriate diagnostic, palliative, or therapeutic tasks. As the word

tissue

implies, tissue engineering in general involves cellular components and their organization. Any cell, given its broad genetic program, expresses a particular phenotype in a manner that is dependent on its environment. The extracellular environment consists of cells, humoral factors, and the extracellular matrix. Research in genetic engineering and the intense focus on growth factors and extracellular matrix biology have made it possible to manipulate both the cell’s genetic program and its phenotypic expression.