English
The selection of biomaterials is an important step in the development process of tissue engineering and regenerative medicine (TERM) applications. The selected biomaterial must have properties that allow several processes to mimic physiological replay, thereby rebuilding the homeostasis of tissue or organ function. Biomaterials derived from extracellular matrix (ECM) possess many such properties, and their applications in this field have been steadily increasing. Given the growing importance of ECM biomaterials, it is necessary to provide a comprehensive overview of their procurement, processing, and integration into TERM applications. This review compiles the main strategies for separating and processing ECM derived biomaterials, as well as the different techniques used for their characterization, namely biochemistry and chemistry, physics, morphology, and biology. Finally, some applications of them in the TERM field were explored and discussed.
