Decellularized Wharton’s Jelly: Biomaterial Potential for Regenerative Medicine Applications - A Mini-Review

Abstract The use of Wharton's Jelly (WJ) as a biomaterial is currently undergoing an appearance in the regenerative medicine field. The biomaterials applications focus on the aspects of cellular growth or delivery of proteins capable of stimulating cellular response. However, the basic knowledge about Wharton jelly and decellularization processing technology combined with understanding the physical-chemical properties of this biomaterial is necessary for proper application in regenerative medicine. This mini-review article summarizes information on the composition of WJ, application of drug delivery, in medicine and discusses recent developments with a special focus on its use for regenerative medicine. The most successful and stimulating applications are studies in regenerative medicine and tissue engineering, for wound healing to treat burns, tumor treatment, nanoparticle carriers, and drug delivery systems.