Ho M.-H.Wang D.-M.Hsieh H.-J.Lai J.-Y.2019-05-032019-05-03200997814200846279781138112247https://scholars.lib.ntu.edu.tw/handle/123456789/406378Porous polymers with suitable porous structures and chemical properties can serve as templates to guide cells to differentiate and grow into tissues or even organs. Such biomedical applications have drawn a lot of research attention and forms a research eld called tissue engineering. For an application in tissue engineering, the polymer should have appropriate biocompatibility and biodegradability. In addition, high porosity, a large surface area, a suitable pore size, and a highly interconnected pore structure are also needed. In this chapter, we concentrate on giving an overview of the methods for preparing a three-dimensional porous polymer structure. Polylactide (PLA), an Food and Drug Administration (FDA)-approved biodegradable polymer for clinical use, is used as an example polymer to demonstrate the pore-forming techniques. First, brief introductions to tissue engineering and PLA are given. An overview of the techniques to fabricate porous PLA then follows. ? 2009 by Taylor & Francis Group, LLC.book part2-s2.0-85057922310https://www.scopus.com/inward/record.uri?eid=2-s2.0-85057922310&partnerID=40&md5=01c96e61955a25a5e516f92012b2de09