ABSTRACT
Objective:To observe the adhesion, growth and differentiation of rat neural stem cells (NSCs) on spinal cord acellular scaffold (SCAS) to evaluate its feasibility for spinal cord tissue engineering. Methods:NSCs derived from neonatal Sprague-Dawley rat cerebral cortex were cultured and identified. SCAS were prepared from female Sprague-Dawley rat spinal cord tissues using modified chemical extraction and physical oscillation, and evaluated. The third generation NSCs were planted on SCAS and co-cultured, the morphology of the cells on the scaffold was observed with immunofluorescence, immunohistochemistry and scanning electron microscope. Results:The cultured cells were NSCs, which could proliferate and differentiate. The porosity, water content and enzymatic hydrolysis rates of the prepared SCAS were significantly higher than that of normal spinal cord (|t| > 4.679, P < 0.01). The matrix structure of SCAS was loosely network-like, with few residual nuclei. NSCs adhered and grew well, and differentiated into neurons and glial cells on SCAS. Conclusion:This kind of SCAS shapes multi-channel spatial structure and is suitable for NSCs adhesion, growth and differentiation, which can be used for spinal cord tissue engineering.