Perspectives on tissue engineering of bone.

The normal repair and regeneration of bone occurs through an ordered and regulated sequence of cellular events. Successful replacement of bone through tissue engineering likely will be dependent on the recapitulation of this cascade of events. This report presents some of the principles to be considered in the design of engineered bone constructs. The role of cells, a supporting matrix, and endogenous or exogenous biologic or mechanical factors are introduced. The authors' experience with a gene therapeutic approach to bone regeneration is presented as one example of using the principles discussed to promote reproducible bone formation.