Soft-tissue analogue design and tissue engineering of liver

Tissue engineering involves the design and optimization of tissue analogues that will support and maintain the critical activities of cells so that the functional inadequacies of the organ of interest can be remedied. Soft-tissue analogues share a broad spectrum of properties and elicit a complex range of responses from mammalian cells. A major simplification however is offered by selected parameters that can serve as generic criteria to judge, design, and promote optimal tissue analogues. In the future, advances in cell biology, molecular biology, materials science, and bioengineering will galvanize the utility of these parameters toward the development of long-term functional organs and tissues.