1 Division of Plastic, Reconstructive and Aesthetic Surgery, Geneva University Hospitals and Medical School, University of Geneva , Geneva, Switzerland .
2 Laboratoire des Polymères STI-IMX-LP, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, Institut des Matériaux and Institut des Sciences et Ingénierie Chimiques , Lausanne, Switzerland .
Tissue Eng Part C Methods. 2017 Dec;23(12):964-970. doi: 10.1089/ten.TEC.2017.0207. Epub 2017 Oct 3.
Tissue engineering technologies are new and promising techniques in fat tissue reconstruction. However, to assess their efficacy before any clinical application, in vivo experiments are mandatory. This study assesses whether microcomputed tomography (CT) scan imaging is suitable to analyze in vivo the behavior of injected engineered polymer and changes in fat tissue. The volume of mice inguinal fat pads and the resorption rate of different polymers were analyzed by CT scan for up to 3 months. Different biomaterials were used, including our innovative microspheres loaded with oleic acid. We were able to follow in vivo the polymer and the fat volume of the same animals during a long-term follow-up of 90 days. Semiautomatic three-dimensional quantification allowed to determine the fat volume enhancement after injection, as well as the resorption rate of our product compared to other biomaterials (i.e., polylactic and hyaluronic acid) until 90 days. Our results demonstrate the encouraging proof-of-principle evidence for the application of micro-CT scan technology to follow in vivo biodegradable polymers in a fat tissue engineering approach. This noninvasive technique offers the advantages of the long-term follow-up of fat tissue and synthetic materials in the same animals, which allows both a scientific evaluation of the measurements and the reduction of the number of animals used in in vivo protocols in accordance with the 3 "R" principles governing the use of animals in science.
组织工程技术是脂肪组织重建的新技术，具有广阔的应用前景。然而，在任何临床应用之前，都需要进行体内实验来评估其疗效。本研究评估了微计算机断层扫描（CT）成像是否适合分析体内注射工程聚合物的行为和脂肪组织的变化。通过 CT 扫描分析了长达 3 个月的小鼠腹股沟脂肪垫的体积和不同聚合物的吸收率。使用了不同的生物材料，包括我们创新性的负载油酸的微球。我们能够在长达 90 天的长期随访中对同一动物的聚合物和脂肪体积进行体内跟踪。半自动三维定量分析可以确定注射后脂肪体积的增加，以及与其他生物材料（即聚乳酸和透明质酸）相比，我们产品的吸收率，直到 90 天。我们的结果证明了微 CT 扫描技术在脂肪组织工程方法中应用于体内生物可降解聚合物的原理的初步证据令人鼓舞。这种非侵入性技术具有长期随访脂肪组织和合成材料的优势，这使得在体内实验中可以对测量结果进行科学评估，并根据 3R 原则减少动物数量，该原则指导着动物在科学中的应用。
