Ligament/Tendon and Cartilage Tissue Engineering and Reconstruction

Dear Colleagues,

Ligaments, tendons and cartilage share many tissue characteristics, such as the following: a poor or absent blood supply, a low cell content, and an abundant collagenous extracellular matrix. Some of these properties may explain their limited self-healing capacity during tissue injury.

Hence, tissue engineering (TE) represents a promising strategy for tissue reconstruction. Using novel biomimetic biomaterials as chondro-/tenogenic cell carriers represents an innovative culturing approach; e.g., using smart bioreactors and versatile bioprinting strategies could support the regeneration of these tissues with tissue engineered implants. Cells recruited for TE, the tailored release of bioactive factors, and targeted cell lineage differentiation are also of interest. Novel data describing in vivo TE results gained using animal models are also welcome.

Lead by Prof. Dr. Gundula Schulze-Tanzil and assisted by our Topical Advisory Panel Member, Dr. Clemens Gögele (Paracelsus Medical University), this Special Issue will focus on the most recent developments in tendon/ligament and cartilage tissue engineering, comprising in vitro and in vivo studies.

Prof. Dr. Gundula Schulze-Tanzil
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. International Journal of Molecular Sciences is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. There is an Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal. For details about the APC please see here. Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

• cartilage
• tendon
• ligament
• anterior cruciate ligament
• bioprinting
• scaffold
• bioreactor
• tissue engineering