The profound transformations occurred in our modern age have been made
possible by the unique combination of new technologies. Among them, medicine
has completely changed our perception of life. Longevity has been significantly
extended and linked to new lifestyles. The negative impact that
pathologies and ageing have always had on the quality of our life is now
mitigated by the availability of treatments daily applied to many individuals
worldwide. For many years, pharmacological and surgical treatments have
been supported by the introduction of biomedical devices. Biomedical implants
have played a key role in the development of these treatments and achieved the
objective of replacing tissue and organ structures and functionalities. Gradually,
the scientific and clinical communities have understood that replacement
could be improved by materials able to interact with the tissues and to participate
in their metabolism and functions. This approach soon led to biomedical
implants with improved clinical performances, but also to a new aspiration;
rather than replacing damaged tissues and organs scientists and clinicians
nowadays aim at their partial or complete regeneration. As a consequence of
this ambition, the disciplines of tissue engineering and regenerative medicine
have recently emerged.