Department of Stomatology, Taihe Hospital, Hubei University of Medicine, Shiyan, Hubei, 442000, China.
Center for Evidence-Based and Translational Medicine, Zhongnan Hospital of Wuhan University, Wuhan, Hubei, 430071, China.
Biomed Pharmacother. 2018 Feb;98:325-332. doi: 10.1016/j.biopha.2017.12.075. Epub 2017 Dec 27.
This study aimed to investigate the effect of exogenous vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) introduced by bioceramic composite materials on jawbone defect. Rabbits were randomly divided into four groups: control, sham, model, and stent. In the model group, holes of jawbone defect were created through surgery. In the stent group, rabbits with jawbone defect were treated with polyether ketone (PEK)/biphasic bioceramic ((PEK-BBC)) composite materials encapsulating VEGF. At 4, 8, and 16 weeks post-operation, HE and Van Gieson staining of jawbones were performed to characterize the repair status of the bone defect. For all time intervals, we found intact bone structures in the control and sham groups and there was no improvement in the bone defect position in the model group. However, in the stent group, we excitingly observed the growth of many osteocytes in the margin of stents at 8 and 16 weeks. RT-PCR, western blot, and immunofluorescence analysis were conducted to investigate the VEGF expression at 4, 8, and 16 weeks post-operation. At 8 weeks, the level of VEGF in the model group was sharply downregulated as compared with the control group (P < .05) and interestingly, the stent group had a much higher level of VEGF than the model group (P < .05). At 16 weeks, the VEGF expression in the model group was further reduced comparing to the control group (P < .05), which was also elevated to a relative high level by the stent treatment (P < .05). As for the sham group, the VEGF level was stable without any difference from the control group at all time intervals. Therefore, exogenous VEGF introduced by bioceramic composite materials promoted the restoration of bone defect in rabbits.
本研究旨在探讨生物陶瓷复合材料引入的外源性血管内皮生长因子（VEGF）对颌骨缺损的影响。将兔子随机分为四组：对照组、假手术组、模型组和支架组。在模型组中，通过手术在颌骨上创建骨缺损孔。在支架组中，将聚醚醚酮（PEK）/双相生物陶瓷（PEK-BBC）复合材料封装的 VEGF 用于治疗颌骨缺损的兔子。术后 4、8 和 16 周，对颌骨进行 HE 和 Van Gieson 染色，以描述骨缺损的修复状态。在所有时间点，我们都发现对照组和假手术组的骨结构完整，模型组的骨缺损位置没有改善。然而，在支架组中，我们在 8 和 16 周时令人兴奋地观察到支架边缘有许多成骨细胞的生长。在术后 4、8 和 16 周时进行 RT-PCR、western blot 和免疫荧光分析，以研究 VEGF 的表达。在 8 周时，模型组的 VEGF 水平与对照组相比明显下调（P <.05），而支架组的 VEGF 水平明显高于模型组（P <.05）。在 16 周时，模型组的 VEGF 表达与对照组相比进一步降低（P <.05），而支架治疗则将其升高到相对较高的水平（P <.05）。对于假手术组，VEGF 水平在所有时间点均保持稳定，与对照组没有差异。因此，生物陶瓷复合材料引入的外源性 VEGF 促进了兔子颌骨缺损的修复。
