Jiangsu Key Laboratory of Neuroregeneration, Nantong University, 226001 Nantong, PR China; The Neural Regeneration Co-innovation Center of Jiangsu Province, 226001 Nantong, PR China.
Wake Forest Institute for Regenerative Medicine, Wake Forest University Health Sciences, Medical Center Blvd, Winston-Salem, NC 27157, USA; The Neural Regeneration Co-innovation Center of Jiangsu Province, 226001 Nantong, PR China.
Biomaterials. 2014 Oct;35(30):8503-13. doi: 10.1016/j.biomaterials.2014.05.093. Epub 2014 Jul 5.
Chitosan is found to promote the regeneration of peripheral nerve system in our previous studies, whereas the regeneration speed is not satisfied with clinical request. Micropatterning could promote cell orientation and growth, however, the effect of porous chitosan micropatterning on nerve regeneration is rarely reported. In this study, the porous chitosan micropatterning with surface ridge/groove and inner porosity structure was fabricated using a combination of micromodeling and lyophilization method. The morphology and stability of the prepared chitosan micropatterning were evaluated, the regulation of Schwann cells behavior by chitosan micropatterning was evaluated. The results showed that the chitosan micropatterning displayed stripe-like structure with a clear and complete edge. The micropatterning with 30/30 μm was more stable than 20/20 μm sample. Schwann cells on chitosan micropatterning showed orientation adhesion and began to grow along a certain direction after culture for 2 h, and displayed the minimal orientation angle and the largest length/width ratio on 30/30 μm micropatterning after further culture for 3 d and 5 d, indicating the most obvious cell orientation. Moreover, the secretion of nerve growth factor (NGF) demonstrated that the micropatterned chitosan had no negative influence on the physiological function of Schwann cells. Thus, the results indicate that the porous chitosan micropatterning can regulate Schwann cell growth well, which may have potential application in nerve regeneration. The study provides an important basis for constructing porous nerve conduit with micropatterning structure in the inner wall.
壳聚糖在我们之前的研究中被发现能促进周围神经系统的再生，然而其再生速度不能满足临床要求。微图案化可以促进细胞的定向和生长，然而，多孔壳聚糖微图案化对神经再生的影响很少有报道。在这项研究中，使用微造型和冷冻干燥方法的组合，制备了具有表面脊/槽和内部多孔结构的多孔壳聚糖微图案化。评估了制备的壳聚糖微图案化的形态和稳定性，评估了壳聚糖微图案化对施万细胞行为的调节。结果表明，壳聚糖微图案化呈现出具有清晰完整边缘的条纹状结构。30/30μm 的微图案化比 20/20μm 的样品更稳定。培养 2 小时后，施万细胞在壳聚糖微图案化上表现出定向粘附，并开始沿一定方向生长，进一步培养 3 天和 5 天后，在 30/30μm 的微图案化上显示出最小的取向角和最大的长度/宽度比，表明细胞取向最明显。此外，神经生长因子（NGF）的分泌表明，微图案化壳聚糖对施万细胞的生理功能没有负面影响。因此，结果表明多孔壳聚糖微图案化可以很好地调节施万细胞的生长，这可能在神经再生中有潜在的应用。该研究为构建具有微图案化结构的内壁多孔神经导管提供了重要依据。
