Regenerative medicine of airway cartilage

Regenerative medicine and tissue engineering are concepts that become more and more popular in clinical sciences, including otorhinolaryngology, head and neck surgery. The current literature with regard to the strategies of regenerative medicine, the role of growth factors in airway cartilage repair, and the most promising results from several research groups dealing with tissue-engineered trachea is reviewed. Moreover the healing pattern of the airway cartilage induced by bone morphogenetic protein-2 treatment, and the role of local progenitor cells in the regenerative process are described in details. The monograph should be useful to life science researchers, medical students, otolaryngologists, head and neck surgeons, or anyone else who may be interested in the field of regenerative medicine.