This review examines recent methodologies for fabricating nonwoven polymer materials through electrospinning, focusing on the underlying physical principles, including the effects of external parameters, experimental conditions, material selection, and primary operational mechanisms. Potential applications of electrospun polymer matrices in tissue engineering are analyzed, with particular emphasis on their utility in biomedical contexts. Key challenges in incorporating new materials into biomedical devices are discussed, along with recent advances in electrospinning techniques driving innovation in this field.

Spinal cord injury (SCI) remains a major clinical challenge due to the limited regenerative capacity of the central nervous system (CNS). Effective scaffolds for repair must combine mechanical compatibility with host tissue, controlled degradation matching the time course of regeneration, and microarchitectural features that promote neuronal survival. Electrospun nanofibrous scaffolds mimic the structural and mechanical features of the extracellular matrix, providing critical cues for neuronal adhesion and glial modulation in neural regeneration. Here, we fabricated biodegradable poly(lactic acid)/poly(ε-caprolactone) (PLA/PCL) scaffolds using a dichloromethane/tetrahydrofuran (DCM/THF) solvent system to induce surface porosity via solvent-driven phase separation. The DCM/THF solvent system formulation produced nanofibers with porous surfaces and increased area for cell interaction. PLA/PCL scaffolds showed a Young’s modulus of ~26 MPa and sustained degradation, particularly under oxidative conditions simulating the post-injury microenvironment. In vitro, these scaffolds enhanced neuronal density up to fivefold and maintained ~80% viability over 10 days in primary neuron–glia cultures. Morphometric analysis revealed that DCM/THF-based scaffolds supported astrocytes with preserved process complexity and reduced circularity, indicative of a less reactive morphology. In contrast, scaffolds fabricated with 1,1,1,3,3,3-hexafluoro-2-propanol (HFIP) displayed reduced bioactivity and promoted morphological features associated with astrocyte reactivity, including cell rounding and process retraction. These findings demonstrate that solvent-driven control of scaffold microarchitecture is a powerful strategy to enhance neuronal integration and modulate glial morphology, positioning DCM/THF-processed PLA/PCL scaffolds as a promising platform for CNS tissue engineering.

Spinal cord injury (SCI) is a complex pathology with a multifaceted pathogenesis and, to date, no definitive treatment strategy. Among emerging therapeutic approaches, a combination strategy leveraging biomaterial-based scaffolds for the delivery of both cells and therapeutic agents to the injured spinal cord has shown significant promise. While standalone cell therapies often demonstrate limited efficacy, biomaterial scaffolds can protect transplanted cells from the hostile microenvironment of the injury site and provide a supportive matrix for cell adhesion and subsequent integration into the host neural tissue. Contemporary approaches in cell and organoid therapy, combined with smart biomaterials that can dynamically adapt their properties in response to specific stimuli, present unprecedented opportunities for SCI treatment. This review aims to provide a comprehensive overview of the recent advances in SCI therapies involving cell transplantation and biomaterial scaffolds, with a particular focus on their combinations. It highlights the strengths and limitations of different types of cell transplantation, including less conventional approaches, discusses brain organoid transplantation methods, and identifies the most frequently used scaffold types selected based on their mechanical properties and 3D architecture.

Biomaterials for neural tissue engineering, cell delivery, and chronic neural interfaces are conventionally characterized through physicochemical descriptors such as stiffness, topography, surface chemistry, and degradation rate. However, their biological effect is mediated by the material–tissue interface, a dynamic layer formed through protein adsorption, extracellular matrix ligand presentation, and progressive cellular remodeling, that determines how these design parameters are translated into neuronal and glial responses. This review synthesizes current evidence on how neurons, astrocytes, and microglia sense the material–tissue interface, how integrin-dependent adhesion complexes, mechanosensitive Piezo1 channels, and downstream FAK/Src, RhoA/ROCK, and YAP/TAZ pathways transduce interfacial cues into intracellular signaling, and how key design variables (mechanical properties, architecture, surface chemistry, electrical conductivity, and degradation) can be tuned to direct these processes in regenerative scaffolds and chronic neural interfaces. Particular attention is given to studies distinguishing direct neuronal effects from glia-mediated modulation, since concurrent changes in neuronal and glial markers are often reported without establishing causal neuron–glia interaction. We further discuss methodological limitations, including model mismatch across 2D, 3D, and in vivo systems and insufficient duration of chronic observation, that constrain current interpretations of biomaterial-induced neuron–glia crosstalk. We argue that functional biomaterial design for neural applications should move from optimizing isolated cellular readouts toward multicellular experimental frameworks capable of resolving neuron–glia–ECM interactions over physiologically relevant timescales.

Objective: Spinal cord injury (SCI) is a debilitating condition that not only affects motor and sensory functions, but also causes widespread neuroplastic and neuroinflammatory changes in the hippocampus, a brain region critical for learning and memory. Methods: This study examined region-specific changes in hippocampal subregions (CA1, CA3, and dentate gyrus) in a rat model of SCI, evaluating neurogenesis, microglial and astroglial cell activation, and behavioral outcomes. Results and Discussion: The study revealed distinct patterns of neuroplastic and neuroinflammatory changes in hippocampal subregions, with some areas showing increased susceptibility to injury-induced changes. Behavioral analyses showed a significant correlation between these hippocampal changes and impairments in memory and learning ability, highlighting the functional consequences of SCI on cognitive processes. Conclusions: The findings emphasize the importance of understanding the relationship between neuroplasticity and neuroinflammation in the hippocampus after SCI, which may facilitate the development of targeted therapeutic strategies to mitigate cognitive deficits.

This review examines recent methodologies for fabricating nonwoven polymer materials through electrospinning, focusing on the underlying physical principles, including the effects of external parameters, experimental conditions, material selection, and primary operational mechanisms. Potential applications of electrospun polymer matrices in tissue engineering are analyzed, with particular emphasis on their utility in biomedical context. Key challenges in incorporating new materials into biomedical devices are discussed, along with recent advances in electrospinning techniques driving innovation in this field.