Natural proteins for 3D scaffolds in tissue engineering

The basic principle of biomimicry is currently adopted in tissue engineering approach for the design of the majority of the three-dimensional (3D) scaffolds, both in terms of physicochemical properties, as well as bioactivity. Custom-made scaffold fabrication methodologies can be successfully used to manipulate biocompatible materials (synthetic and natural ones), thus assuring an improved performance of the scaffolds through an accurate design of matrix pores and degradation properties to fully match the specific requirements of natural tissue to be regenerated. However, extensive studies have highlighted some intrinsic limitation of synthetic polymers in terms of biological performance, thus requiring the need of tailored functionalization via bioactive molecules (i.e., proteins, growth factors). Hence, proteins of natural origin may represent the most attractive alternative to synthetic polymers, mainly due to their similarities with the extracellular matrix (ECM), chemical versatility as well as their excellent biocompatibility. This chapter aims at classifying the most interesting natural proteins suitable for the fabrication of three-dimensional porous scaffolds, by remarking main advantages in different biologically and clinically relevant applications.