Peripheral nerve injury is a common complication resulting from accidents and diseases. Functional nerve guidance conduits offer a promising solution for creating a favorable regenerative environment to promote axon elongation and myelin production. However, the current state of nerve guidance conduit development falls short of meeting the requirements for repairing long-gap nerve injuries. Various manufacturing methods have been employed for nerve guidance conduit production, including solvent casting, phase separation, gas foaming, electrostatic spinning, freeze-drying, and 3D printing technologies. Nonetheless, numerous technical challenges still need to be overcome before these conduits can be effectively utilized in clinical applications.

Nerve guidance conduit materials can be classified into natural and synthetic polymers. Although natural polymers have weaker mechanical properties and present difficulties in forming three-dimensional structures, they have limitations. On the other hand, synthetic materials suffer from issues such as poor biocompatibility. Thus, there is still significant potential for developing materials to manufacture effective nerve conduits.

This Methods Collection focuses on materials for functionalized nerve conduits, including those with electrical activity and magnetic response. It also explores the combination of Schwann cells, stem cells, and nerve growth factors with nerve conduits. Additionally, the collection investigates the incorporation of nerve conduits with drugs known to promote nerve regeneration, such as Erythropoietin (EPO), Tacrolimus (FK506), and chondroitin-ABC (chABC).