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they are being explored as platforms to induce electric stimulation for electrore-
sponsive cells such as neurons (Ghasemi-Mobarakeh et al. 2011 ). Polypyrrole is
one example of CP demonstrated to differentiate neural cells (Stewart et al. 2015 ;
Jin and Li 2014 ). In a study by Zhang et al. ( 2010 ) it was shown that by controlling
the dopant in the polypyrrole scaffold, the cell fate could be directed. Polypyrrole
doped with the polymer polystyrene sulfonate (PSS) induced hESCs differentiation
after 20 days, whereas polypyrrole doped with the peptide laminin enhanced cell
attachment and spreading. This study shows that by adjusting the type of dopant in
the electroactive polymer, cell fate and development could be controlled.
13.2.3.2 Myogenic Lineage
Human iPSCs are being applied in cardiac regeneration due to their ability to dif-
ferentiate into cardiomyocytes. While iPSCs have been shown to improve cardiac
function following injection into an infarcted heart (Masumoto et al. 2014 ), a major
limitation is the significant decrease in their viability following engraftment.
Fig. 13.3 SEM analysis of mESCs growth and differentiation on poly(lactic-co-glycolic acid)
(PLGA) fiber scaffolds. (a) and (b) show differentiated mESCs on random and aligned PLGA
fibers respectively. Scale bar (a) 50 μm, (b) 100 μm. Representative confocal fluorescent images of
the neural marker, nestin shown in green, on random (c) and aligned (d) PLGA fibers. The cell
nuclei were counterstained with DAPI (blue). Scale bar 100 μm. (e) Percentage of positive cells for
nestin determined by flow cytometry analysis of mESC differentiation on PLGA nanofibers. *
indicates a p values <0.05. (adapted from Sperling et al. 2017 )
D. Mawad et al.