Peptide-Modified Hydrogels for Therapeutic Vascularization

Abstract Provascularization strategies are critical to the success of many tissue engineering applications and may also be of great value in the clinical management of ischemic vascular diseases. The use of biofunctional biomaterials to promote vascularization is increasing, supported by advances in the understanding of vascular cell biology and key elements of neovascularization processes. In particular, the design of increasingly sophisticated systems has been supported by greater knowledge on the dynamic interaction of multiple growth factors, acting on different time windows and spatial locations, and on the cross talk between vascular cells and the extracellular matrix (ECM). Polymer–peptide hybrids stand out as a promising class of biomaterials, combining the ECM-like structural features of hydrogels with the biological activity, specificity, and design flexibility of peptide moieties, being commonly used as reservoirs of angiogenic compounds and/or vascular cells. In this chapter, we present an overview and critical perspective on strategies involving the biofunctionalization of hydrogels with different types of angiogenic peptides for therapeutic vascularization.