High throughput approaches for controlled stem cell differentiation

Stem cells have unique ability to undergo self-renewal indefinitely in culture and potential to differentiate into almost all cell types in the human body. However, the developing a method for efficiently differentiating or manipulating these stem cells for therapeutic purposes remains a challenging problem. Pluripotent stem cells, as well as adult stem cells, require biological cues for their proliferation and differentiation. These cues are largely controlled by cell–cell, cell-insoluble factors (such as extracellular matrix), and cell-soluble factors (such as cytokine or growth factors) interactions. In this review, we describe a state of research on various stem cell-based tissue engineering applications and high throughput strategies for developing synthetic or biosynthetic microenvironments to allow efficient commitments in stem cells.