From Reprogramming Barriers to Chondrogenic Fate: Integration-Free Platforms and ECM Signalling in Cartilage and Joint Regeneration

This Collection brings together work on the mechanisms governing chondrogenic lineage specification, connecting two fields that have historically developed in parallel: integration-free and transgene-free reprogramming and iPSC engineering, and the developmental biology of cartilage, joint morphogenesis, and ECM-instructed fate decisions. Together, these areas represent a critical interface for advancing safe, reproducible, and developmentally informed strategies for cartilage and joint repair.We welcome contributions addressing:Non-integrative and DNA-free reprogramming strategies for generating iPSCs or directly converting cells toward chondrogenic lineagesTranscription factor delivery approaches, including protein transduction, cell-penetrating peptides, and mRNA-based methods, that support safe and clinically translatable cell engineeringReprogramming barriers, pluripotency exit, and quality control challenges relevant to musculoskeletal applicationsECM and niche signals, including hyaluronan, heparan sulfate proteoglycans, and morphogen gradients, as instructive regulators of chondrocyte specification, maturation, and joint formationDirected differentiation of iPSCs or mesenchymal progenitors toward articular, growth plate, or fibrocartilage lineagesDevelopmental programmes, lineage tracing, fate mapping, and morphogenetic patterning, that can inform next-generation in vitro differentiation protocolsPreclinical models and translational frameworks for cartilage repair and osteoarthritis Topic editors: Krishna Kumar Haridhasapavalan, Yingcui Li Source: https://www.frontiersin.org/research-topics/83465/from-reprogramming-barriers-to-chondrogenic-fate-integration-free-platforms-and-ecm-signalling-in-cartilage-and-joint-regeneration