ABSTRACT
The ultimate goal of tissue engineered skin substitutes used for wound healing is to enhance the healing process. Skin is the largest organ that serves as an outer barrier at the interface between the body and its surrounding environment. Accordingly, it provides a protective barrier against microbial invasion and protects the body against mechanical, chemical, and thermal injuries. The most common reason for loss of skin is burns in which a considerable area of skin can be injured without the possibility of tissue regeneration. Great techniques have been developed to create substitutes that imitate human skin. Engineered cell-free as well as cell-containing skin substitutes provide a possible off-the-shelve solution to the problem of donor graft shortage. Tissue engineering (TE) is a concept whereby cells are taken from a patient, the number of cells is expanded in vitro, and then seeded into a scaffold. The seeded cells proliferate in scaffold and over a time from few days to months, new tissue is formed. Scaffolds are three-dimensional matrixes and act as a template for the regeneration of tissue. The ideal scaffolds must possess proper microstructures that enable the adherence, proliferation, and differentiation of cells. Moreover, it should have mechanical strength and biodegradability. The tissue-engineered skin substitutes serve as protection from fluid loss and infection. In this entry, we deal with an overview of critical issues related to skin, wound healing, advancement in TE, fabrication techniques, and methods employed in aiding in skin regeneration.
