COVID-19 and the role of tissue engineering

New Rochelle, NY, May 7, 2020–Tissue engineering has a unique set of tools and technologies for developing preventive strategies, diagnostics, and treatments that can play an important role during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. Three key areas pioneered by tissue engineers that could be applied to the current COVID-19 crisis and to future viral outbreaks are highlighted in an article published in Tissue Engineering, Part A, a peer-reviewed journal from Mary Ann Liebert, Inc., publishers. Click here here to read the full-text article available Open Access on the Tissue Engineering website.

Alexander Tatara, MD, PhD, Massachusetts General Hospital (Boston) is author of the article entitled “The Role of Tissue Engineering in COVID-19 and Future Viral Outbreaks.” Dr. Tatara emphasizes critical strengths of the field: applying engineering principles to biological systems, collaboration across disciplines, and rapid translation of technologies from the benchtop to the bedside. The three key areas of tissue engineering that could make an impact on the fight against COVID-19 are in vitro models of viral disease to better understand the mechanism of infection and to screen for potential therapeutics; drug delivery systems to better target medications and increase their bioavailability; and vaccine platforms, using biomaterials for vaccine delivery and to boost the immune response to the vaccine.

“In this timely work, Dr. Tatara brings a needed clinical perspective on the critical strategies that the tissue engineering field can provide to help stem the COVID-19 pandemic. This article should be a powerful resource for tissue engineering laboratories around the world,” says Tissue Engineering Co-Editor-in-Chief John P. Fisher, PhD, Fischell Family Distinguished Professor & Department Chair, and Director of the NIH Center for Engineering Complex Tissues at the University of Maryland.

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Tissue Engineering is an authoritative peer-reviewed journal published monthly online and in print in three parts: Part A, the flagship journal published 24 times per year; Part B: Reviews, published bimonthly, and Part C: Methods, published 12 times per year. Led by Co-Editors-in-Chief Antonios G. Mikos, PhD, Louis Calder Professor at Rice University, Houston, TX, and John P. Fisher, PhD, Fischell Family Distinguished Professor & Department Chair, and Director of the NIH Center for Engineering Complex Tissues at the University of Maryland, the Journal brings together scientific and medical experts in the fields of biomedical engineering, material science, molecular and cellular biology, and genetic engineering. Leadership of Tissue Engineering Parts B (Reviews) and Part C (Methods) is provided by Katja Schenke-Layland, PhD, Eberhard Karls University, Tübingen, Heungsoo Shin, PhD, Hanyang University; and John A. Jansen, DDS, PhD, Radboud University, and Xiumei Wang, PhD, Tsinghua University respectively. Tissue Engineering is the official journal of the Tissue Engineering & Regenerative Medicine International Society (TERMIS). Complete tables of content and a sample issue may be viewed on the Tissue Engineering website.

Mary Ann Liebert, Inc., publishers is a privately held, fully integrated media company known for establishing authoritative peer-reviewed journals in many promising areas of science and biomedical research, including Stem Cells and Development, Human Gene Therapy, and Advances in Wound Care. Its biotechnology trade magazine, GEN (Genetic Engineering & Biotechnology News), was the first in its field and is today the industry’s most widely read publication worldwide. A complete list of the firm’s 90 journals, books, and newsmagazines is available on the Mary Ann Liebert, Inc., publishers website