This book offers a comprehensive treatment of the molecular design, characterization, and physical chemistry of soft interfaces. At the same time, the book aims to encourage the fabrication of functional materials including biomaterials. During the past few decades there has been steady growth in soft-interface science, and that growth has been especially rapid in the twenty-first century. The field is interdisciplinary because it involves chemistry, polymer science, materials science, physical chemistry, and biology. Based on the increasing interdisciplinary nature of undergraduate and graduate programs, the primary goal of this present work is to serve as a comprehensive resource for senior-level undergraduates and for graduate students, particularly in polymer chemistry, materials science, bioconjugate chemistry, bioengineering, and biomaterials. Additionally, with the growing interest in the fabrication of functional soft materials, this book provides essential fundamental information for researchers not only in academia but also in industry.

Functional Polymer Conjugates for Medicinal Nucleic Acid Delivery, by Ernst Wagner

Biodegradable Nanoparticles as Vaccine Adjuvants and Delivery Systems: Regulation of Immune Responses by Nanoparticle-Based Vaccine, by Takami Akagi, Masanori Baba and Mitsuru Akashi

Biodegradable Polymeric Assemblies for Biomedical Materials, by Yuichi Ohya, Akihiro Takahashi and Koji Nagahama
PEGylation Technology in Nanomedicine, by Yutaka Ikeda and Yukio Nagasaki

Cytocompatible Hydrogel Composed of Phospholipid Polymers for Regulation of Cell Functions, by Kazuhiko Ishihara, Yan Xu and Tomohiro Konno

Design of Biointerfaces for Regenerative Medicine, by Yusuke Arima, Koichi Kato, Yuji Teramura and Hiroo Iwata

Advances in Tissue Engineering Approaches to Treatment of Intervertebral Disc Degeneration: Cells and Polymeric Scaffolds for Nucleus Pulposus Regeneration, by Jeremy J. Mercuri and Dan T. Simionescu

Functionalized Biocompatible Nanoparticles for Site-Specific Imaging and Therapeutics, by Ranu K. Dutta, Prashant K. Sharma, Hisatoshi Kobayashi and Avinash C. Pandey

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The extracellular matrix (ECM) supports cells and regulates various cellular functions in our body. The native ECM promises to provide an excellent scaffold for regenerative medicine. In order to use the ECM as a scaffold in medicine, its cellular fractions need to be removed while retaining its structural and compositional properties. This process is called decellularization, and the resulting product is known as the decellularized extracellular matrix (dECM). This book focuses on the sources of dECM and its preparation, characterization techniques, fabrication, and applications in regenerative medicine and biological studies. Using this book, the reader will gain a good foundation in the field of ECM decellularization complemented with a broad overview of dECM characterization, ranging from structural observation and compositional assessment to immune responses against dECM and applications, ranging from microfabrication and 3D-printing to the application of tissue-derived dECM in vascular grafts and corneal tissue engineering etc. The book closes with a section dedicated to cultured cell dECM, a complementary technique of tissue-derived dECM preparation, for application in tissue engineering and regenerative medicine, addressing its use in stem cell differentiation and how it can help in the study of the tumor microenvironment as well as in clinical trials of peripheral nerve regeneration.

Functional Polymer Conjugates for Medicinal Nucleic Acid Delivery, by Ernst Wagner

Biodegradable Nanoparticles as Vaccine Adjuvants and Delivery Systems: Regulation of Immune Responses by Nanoparticle-Based Vaccine, by Takami Akagi, Masanori Baba and Mitsuru Akashi

Biodegradable Polymeric Assemblies for Biomedical Materials, by Yuichi Ohya, Akihiro Takahashi and Koji Nagahama
PEGylation Technology in Nanomedicine, by Yutaka Ikeda and Yukio Nagasaki

Cytocompatible Hydrogel Composed of Phospholipid Polymers for Regulation of Cell Functions, by Kazuhiko Ishihara, Yan Xu and Tomohiro Konno

Design of Biointerfaces for Regenerative Medicine, by Yusuke Arima, Koichi Kato, Yuji Teramura and Hiroo Iwata

Advances in Tissue Engineering Approaches to Treatment of Intervertebral Disc Degeneration: Cells and Polymeric Scaffolds for Nucleus Pulposus Regeneration, by Jeremy J. Mercuri and Dan T. Simionescu

Functionalized Biocompatible Nanoparticles for Site-Specific Imaging and Therapeutics, by Ranu K. Dutta, Prashant K. Sharma, Hisatoshi Kobayashi and Avinash C. Pandey

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