Abstract
By definition, a smart biomaterial is a material, such as a ceramic, alloy, gel or polymer, that can convert energy from one form into another by responding to a change in a stimulus in its environment. These stimuli may involve temperature, pH, moisture, or electric and magnetic fields. In particular, thermoresponsive biomaterials have been successfully employed to host mammalian cells with a view to musculoskeletal tissue engineering. The presentation provides an overview of the use of thermosensitive polymers for the non-enzymatic stem cell harvesting, cell sheet engineering, three-dimensional scaffolds fabrications and organ-printing materials.
