Vignesh Muthuvijayan

Estimation of the possible toxic effects of medical devices (MDs) directed toward only problems associated with exposure route and dose, exposure to some by-products produced during the synthesis of MDs, as well as matrix effects. Moreover, more developments are required to enhance methodology and analysis predictability for estimating the immune/particulate toxicity. However, developing techniques are being proposed for determining blood compatibility, fibrosis, and adhesion. To develop an effective MD, it is crucial to assess the possible toxicities associated with the employed substances/polymers in the MDs. This chapter discusses the factors influencing toxicity, toxicity testing methods (e.g., carcinogenicity, cytotoxicity, pyrogenicity, genotoxicity, etc.), and toxicological risk assessment.

Nanomaterials (NMs) possess versatile mechanical and physicochemical properties that render them suitable for a wide range of applications, including medicine, agriculture, sensing, and cosmetics, to name a few. The NM–microbe complex formation is studied with the focus on antimicrobial activity of NMs. The NM–microbe complex formation is also exploited for diagnostic applications. Here, we look at various surface modifications of NMs that can effectively impart potent antimicrobial activity to the material by controlling the NM–microbe interaction. We will also discuss various analytical techniques to characterize the interaction between NMs and microbes.

Soft tissues connect, support, or surround other structures and organs of the body, including skeletal muscles, tendon vessels, and nerves supplying these components. Also, organs such as the heart, brain, liver, and kidney are considered as soft tissues. Acute and chronic injury may cause transient or permanent damage to organs and soft tissues. If the damage is severe, the natural physiological repair and restoration mechanisms are not possible. The repair or regeneration using tissue engineered (TE) scaffolds has been considered as a clinical solution. TE approach involves the replacement of damaged parts using grafts made from natural or synthetic or composite polymers. Choosing the polymer with appropriate biological, physicochemical, and mechanical properties is the key to make a successful TE scaffold, and it is still a challenging task. Moreover, the fabrication technique and choice of cells or growth factors for encapsulation to develop the graft also play a crucial role. Therefore, in this chapter, we have highlighted the grafts developed for engineering soft tissues such as blood vessels, skin, cartilage, intervertebral disc, tendon, and skeletal muscle. We have restricted our focus on electrospun scaffolds, and injectable hydrogels prepared using polymers include collagen (Col), chitosan (CS), hyaluronic acid (HA) alginate (Alg), poly(caprolactone) (PCL), poly(lactic acid) (PLA), poly(glycolic-lactic acid) (PLGA), and their composites. This chapter will help the readers to understand the choice of materials and fabrication techniques for developing successful TE scaffolds for soft tissue engineering applications.