Application of electrospun nanofibrous scaffolds in pulp regeneration

Electrospinning technology is currently the only technology capable of directly and continuously preparing polymer nanofibers. It can prepare a variety of nanofibers with different characteristics by using high voltage electrostatic field. These electrospun nanofibers have an inherently high porosity, high surface-to-volume ratio and good mechanical properties, allowing the engineering of scaffolds with a nanoscale topography and high porosity similar to that of the natural extracellular matrix (ECM) to facilitate cell attachment, migration, proliferation, differentiation and functional expression. Thus, electrospun nanofibers have been widely applied in tissue engineering for different purposes such as bone, cartilage, neural, vascular, and skin regeneration and are being developed for pulp regeneration. This review briefly describes the preparation process and biological characteristics of electrospun nanofibers; furthermore, the most recent and state-of-the-art work on electrospun nanofibrous scaffolds, primarily their composition and structure in pulp tissue engineering, is introduced.