Progress and perspectives of neural tissue engineering

Traumatic injuries to the nervous system lead to a common clinical problem with a quite high incidence and affect the patient's quality of life. Based on a major challenge not yet addressed by current therapeutic interventions for these diseases, a novel promising field of neural tissue engineering has emerged, grown, and attracted increasing interest. This review provides a brief summary of the recent progress in the field, especially in combination with the research experience of the author's group. Several important aspects related to tissue engineered nerves, including the theory on their construction, translation into the clinic, improvements in fabrication technologies, and the formation of a regenerative environment, are delineated and discussed. Furthermore, potential research directions for the future development of neural tissue engineering are suggested.