Verstappen Kest, Klymov Alexey, Cicuéndez Mónica, da Silva Daniela M, Barroca Nathalie, Fernández-San-Argimiro Francisco-Javier, Madarieta Iratxe, Casarrubios Laura, Feito María José, Diez-Orejas Rosalía, Ferreira Rita, Leeuwenburgh Sander C G, Portolés María Teresa, Marques Paula A A P, Walboomers X Frank
Department of Dentistry-Regenerative Biomaterials, Research Institute for Medical Innovation, Radboud University Medical Center, 6525 EX, Nijmegen, the Netherlands.
Department of Chemistry in Pharmaceutical Sciences, Faculty of Pharmacy, Complutense University of Madrid, Health Research Institute of the Hospital Clínico San Carlos (IdISSC), 28040, Madrid, Spain.
Mater Today Bio. 2024 Apr 17;26:101059. doi: 10.1016/j.mtbio.2024.101059. eCollection 2024 Jun.
Despite the immense need for effective treatment of spinal cord injury (SCI), no successful repair strategy has yet been clinically implemented. Multifunctional biomaterials, based on porcine adipose tissue-derived extracellular matrix (adECM) and reduced graphene oxide (rGO), were recently shown to stimulate neural stem cell growth and differentiation. Nevertheless, their functional performance in clinically more relevant conditions remains largely unknown. Before clinical application of these adECM-rGO nanocomposites can be considered, a rigorous assessment of the cytotoxicity and biocompatibility of these biomaterials is required. For instance, xenogeneic adECM scaffolds could still harbour potential immunogenicity following decellularization. In addition, the toxicity of rGO has been studied before, yet often in experimental settings that do not bear relevance to regenerative medicine. Therefore, the present study aimed to assess both the as well as safety of adECM and adECM-rGO scaffolds. First, pulmonary, renal and hepato-cytotoxicity as well as macrophage polarization studies showed that scaffolds were benign . Then, a laminectomy was performed at the 10th thoracic vertebra, and scaffolds were implanted directly contacting the spinal cord. For a total duration of 6 weeks, animal welfare was not negatively affected. Histological analysis demonstrated the degradation of adECM scaffolds and subsequent tissue remodeling. Graphene-based scaffolds showed a very limited fibrous encapsulation, while rGO sheets were engulfed by foreign body giant cells. Furthermore, all scaffolds were infiltrated by macrophages, which were largely polarized towards a pro-regenerative phenotype. Lastly, organ-specific histopathology and biochemical analysis of blood did not reveal any adverse effects. In summary, both adECM and adECM-rGO implants were biocompatible upon laminectomy while establishing a pro-regenerative microenvironment, which justifies further research on their therapeutic potential for treatment of SCI.
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