School of Materials Science and Engineering and Department of Nanobio Materials and Electronics, Gwangju Institute of Science and Technology, Gwangju, 500-712, Korea.
Biomacromolecules. 2012 Aug 13;13(8):2287-98. doi: 10.1021/bm3005353. Epub 2012 Jul 26.
Delivering isolated chondrocytes with matrix is a promising approach to promote the cartilage repair. The present study attempted to combine the advantages of porous scaffold and hydrogel in delivering chondrocytes to partial-thickness cartilage defects. An electrospun, gelatin-incorporated PLCL scaffold mechanically similar to natural cartilage was fabricated, and chondrocytes were seeded using an injectable heparin-based hydrogel for efficient cell seeding. The scaffold/hydrogel composite showed more enhanced expression of chondrogenic genes and production of GAGs than those prepared without hydrogel. In addition, significant cartilage formation showing good integration with surrounding, similar to natural cartilage, was observed by scaffold/hydrogel composite system in partial-thickness defects of rabbit knees while no regeneration was observed in control defects. Although no exogenous chondrogenic factors were added, it was evident that the scaffold/hydrogel composite system was highly effective and better than the scaffold alone system without hydrogel for cartilage regeneration both in vitro and in vivo.
用基质传递分离的软骨细胞是促进软骨修复的一种很有前途的方法。本研究试图将多孔支架和水凝胶的优点结合起来，将软骨细胞传递到部分厚度的软骨缺损部位。制备了一种与天然软骨机械性能相似的电纺明胶掺入 PLLCL 支架，并使用可注射的肝素基水凝胶对其进行高效细胞接种。与不使用水凝胶制备的支架相比，支架/水凝胶复合材料表现出更高的软骨生成基因表达和 GAG 产生。此外，在兔膝关节的部分厚度缺损中，支架/水凝胶复合体系观察到明显的软骨形成，与周围组织结合良好，类似于天然软骨，而在对照缺损中则没有观察到再生。尽管没有添加外源性软骨生成因子，但显然支架/水凝胶复合体系在体外和体内的软骨再生方面都非常有效，优于没有水凝胶的单独支架体系。
