Development of stepwise osteogenesis-mimicking matrices for the regulation of mesenchymal stem cell functions.

An extracellular microenvironment, including an extracellular matrix (ECM), is an important factor in regulating stem cell differentiation. During tissue development, the ECM is dynamically remodeled to regulate stem cell functions. Here, we developed matrices mimicking ECM remodeling during the osteogenesis of mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs). The matrices were prepared from cultured MSCs controlled at different stages of osteogenesis and referred to as "stepwise osteogenesis-mimicking matrices." The matrices supported the adhesion and proliferation of MSCs and showed different effects on the osteogenesis of MSCs. On the matrices mimicking the early stage of osteogenesis (early stage matrices), the osteogenesis occurred more rapidly than did that on the matrices mimicking undifferentiated stem cells (stem cell matrices) and the late stage of osteogenesis (late stage matrices). RUNX2 was similarly expressed when MSCs were cultured on both the early stage and late stage matrices but decreased on the stem cell matrices. PPARG expression in the MSCs cultured on the late stage matrices was higher than for those cultured on the stem cell and early stage matrices. This increase of PPARG expression was caused by the suppression of the amount of beta-catenin and downstream signal transduction. These results demonstrate that the osteogenesis-mimicking matrices had different effects on the osteogenesis of MSCs, and the early stage matrices provided a favorable microenvironment for the osteogenesis.

Quantitative analysis of human platelet adhesions under a small-scale flow device.

To realize real-time evaluation of human platelet adhesions onto material surfaces with small volumes of human platelet suspensions, we developed an apparatus consisting of a modified cone and plate-type viscometer, combined with an upright epi-fluorescence microscope. The apparatus allowed real-time evaluation of platelet-material interactions and the initial event of thrombus formation, using small platelet suspension volumes (7.5 microL) under shear flow conditions. To study the dynamic behavior of platelet-material interaction, we chose five representative opaque and transparent materials: acrylate resin (AC), polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE), polyvynylchrolide (PVC), glass, and a monolayer of human normal umbilical cord vein endothelial cells (EC) on glass under shear flow conditions. The values of adhesiveness of human platelets to the test materials in descending order were as follows: AC > PTFE > PVC > glass > human EC. Under this new small-scale flow system, we could obtain highly reproducible data, which were comparable with results from a previously developed large-scale flow system. Therefore, the newly developed cone and plate-type rheometer is a useful instrument for testing and screening materials, and allows precise quantitative evaluation of human platelet adhesion.

Evaluation of negative fixed-charge density in tissue-engineered cartilage by quantitative MRI and relationship with biomechanical properties.

Applying tissue-engineered cartilage in a clinical setting requires noninvasive evaluation to detect the maturity of the cartilage. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) of articular cartilage has been widely accepted and applied clinically in recent years. In this study, we evaluated the negative fixed-charge density (nFCD) of tissue-engineered cartilage using gadolinium-enhanced MRI and determined the relationship between nFCD and biomechanical properties. To reconstruct cartilage tissue, articular chondrocytes from bovine humeral heads were embedded in agarose gel and cultured in vitro for up to 4 weeks. The nFCD of the cartilage was determined using the MRI gadolinium exclusion method. The equilibrium modulus was determined using a compressive stress relaxation test, and the dynamic modulus was determined by a dynamic compression test. The equilibrium compressive modulus and dynamic modulus of the tissue-engineered cartilage increased with an increase in culture time. The nFCD value--as determined with the [Gd-DTPA(2-)] measurement using the MRI technique--increased with culture time. In the regression analysis, nFCD showed significant correlations with equilibrium compressive modulus and dynamic modulus. From these results, gadolinium-enhanced MRI measurements can serve as a useful predictor of the biomechanical properties of tissue-engineered cartilage.

Effect of cell density on adipogenic differentiation of mesenchymal stem cells.

The effect of cell density on the adipogenic differentiation of human bone marrow-derived mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) was investigated by using a patterning technique to induce the formation of a cell density gradient on a micropatterned surface. The adipogenic differentiation of MSCs at a density gradient from 5 x 10(3) to 3 x 10(4) cells/cm2 was examined. Lipid vacuoles were observed at all cell densities after 1-3 weeks of culture in adipogenic differentiation medium although the lipid vacuoles were scarce at the low cell density and abundant at the high cell density. Real-time RT-PCR analysis showed that adipogenesis marker genes encoding peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor gamma2 (PPARgamma2), lipoprotein lipase (LPL), and fatty acid binding protein-4 (FABP4) were detected in the MSCs cultured at all cell densities. The results suggest that there was no apparent effect of cell density on the adipogenic differentiation of human MSCs.

Adipogenic differentiation of mesenchymal stem cells on micropatterned polyelectrolyte surfaces.

Three kinds of photoreactive polyelectrolytes of polyallylamine (PAAm), poly(acrylic acid) (PAAc), and poly(vinyl alcohol) (PVA) were synthesized by the introduction of azidophenyl groups in the respective polymers. The photoreactive PAAm, PAAc, and PVA were micropatterned on polystyrene surfaces by photolithography. Observation with optical microscopy and scanning probe microscopy demonstrated the formation of a striped pattern of polyelectrolytes with a width of 200 microm. The micropatterned polyelectrolytes swelled in water. The micropatterned surfaces were used for cell culture of mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) and their effects on adipogenic differentiation were investigated. The MSCs adhered to and proliferated evenly on the PAAm- and PAAc-patterned surfaces while they formed a cell pattern on the PVA-patterned surface. The PAAm-, PAAc-grafted, and polystyrene surfaces supported cell adhesion while the PVA-grafted surface did not. When cultured in adipogenic differentiation medium, the adipogenic differentiation of MSCs on the polyelectrolyte-patterned surfaces was demonstrated by the formation of lipid vacuoles and gene expression analysis. Oil Red-O-positive cells showed an even distribution on the PAAm- and PAAc-patterned surfaces, while they showed a pattern on the PVA-patterned surface. The fraction of Oil RedO-positive cells increased with culture time. The MSCs cultured on the PAAm-, PAAc-grafted, and polystyrene surfaces in adipogenic differentiation medium expressed the adipogenesis marker genes of peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor gamma2 (PPARgamma2), lipoprotein lipase (LPL), and fatty acid binding protein 4 (FABP4). These results indicate that the PAAm-, and PAAc-grafted, and polystyrene surfaces supported the adipogenesis of MSCs while a PVA-grafted surface did not.

Nuclear deformation and expression change of cartilaginous genes during in vitro expansion of chondrocytes.

Cartilaginous gene expression decreased when chondrocytes were expanded on cell-culture plates. Understanding the dedifferentiation mechanism may provide valuable insight into cartilage tissue engineering. Here, we demonstrated the relationship between the nuclear shape and gene expression during in vitro expansion culture of chondrocytes. Specifically, the projected nuclear area increased and cartilaginous gene expressions decreased during in vitro expansion culture. When the nuclear deformation was recovered by cytochalasin D treatment, aggrecan expression was up-regulated and type I collagen (Col1a2) expression was down-regulated. These results suggest that nuclear deformation may be one of the mechanisms for chondrocyte dedifferentiation during in vitro expansion culture.

In vitro evaluation of biodegradation of poly(lactic-co-glycolic acid) sponges.

Evaluation of the degradability of porous scaffolds is very important for tissue engineering. A protocol in which the condition is close to the in vivo pH environment was established for in vitro evaluation of biodegradable porous scaffolds. Degradation of PLGA sponges in phosphate-buffered solution (PBS) was evaluated with the protocol. The PLGA sponges degraded with incubation time. For the first 12 weeks, the weight loss increased gradually and then remarkably after 12 weeks. In contrast, the number-average molecular weight (Mn) decreased dramatically for the first 12 weeks and then less markedly after 12 weeks. Thermal analysis showed that the glass transition temperatures (Tg) decreased rapidly for the first 12 weeks, and the change became less evident after 12 weeks. These results suggest that the degradation mechanism of PLGA sponges was dominated by autocatalyzed bulk degradation for the first 12 weeks and then by surface degradation after 12 weeks. Physical aging was observed during incubation at 37 degrees C. The heterogeneous structure caused by physical aging might be one of the driving forces that induced autocatalyzed bulk degradation. The degradation mechanism was further supported by the data of pH change and the morphology of the degraded PLGA sponges. The autocatalyzed acidic products flooded out after 8 weeks, the pH dropped, and the walls of the sponges became more porous. The increase of the pore surface area facilitated surface degradation after 12 weeks. The pH was in the range between 7.43 and 7.24 during the entire incubation time. The protocol suppressed extreme changes of the pH and will be useful in the biodegradation evaluation of porous scaffolds for tissue engineering.

Chondrogenic differentiation of human mesenchymal stem cells on photoreactive polymer-modified surfaces.

Human mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) were cultured on polystyrene surfaces modified with photoreactive azidophenyl-derivatives of three different chargeable polymers, poly(acrylic acid) (PAAc), polyallylamine (PAAm), and poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG). The MSCs adhered and spread both on a PAAm-modified surface and on PAAc-modified and polystyrene (control) surfaces. However, the cells adhered more easily to the PAAm-modified surface. The MSCs did not attach to the PEG-modified surface and aggregated to form pellets immediately after cell seeding. The cells proliferated on the PAAc-, PAAm-modified and control surfaces with culture time, formed a monolayer, and aggregated to form pellets. The cells in the pellets that formed on the PAAm- and PEG-modified surfaces after 2 weeks culture had a round morphology and the extracellular matrices were positively stained by safranin O and toluidine blue, while those that formed on the PAAc-modified and control surfaces had a spindle, fibroblast-like morphology and were not positively stained by safranin O and toluidine blue. The pellets that formed on the PAAm- and PEG-modified surfaces contained significantly higher levels of sulfated glycosaminoglycans than did those that formed on the PAAc-modified and control surfaces. Type II collagen and cartilage proteoglycan were immunohistologically detected in the pellets that formed on PAAm- and PEG-modified surfaces, but not those that formed on the PAAc-modified and control surfaces. The MSCs cultured on the PAAm- and PEG-modified surfaces expressed a high level of cartilaginous genes encoding type II collagen and aggrecan, while the MSCs cultured on the PAAc-modified and control surfaces did not express these genes. These results suggest that the PAAm-modified surface supported cell adhesion and proliferation and also promoted chondrogenic differentiation of the MSCs. The PAAc-modified and polystyrene surfaces supported cell adhesion and proliferation, but not chondrogenic differentiation. The PEG-modified surfaces did not support cell adhesion, but did promote chondrogenic differentiation. The adhesion, proliferation, and differentiation of the MSCs could be controlled by surface chemistry.

Scaffold-free cartilage by rotational culture for tissue engineering.

Our objective was to investigate the hypothesis that tissue-engineered cartilage with promising biochemical, mechanical properties can be formed by loading mechanical stress under existing cell-cell interactions analogous to those that occur in condensation during embryonic development. By loading dedifferentiated chondrocytes with mechanical stress under existing cell-cell interactions, we could first form a scaffold-free cartilage tissue with arbitrary shapes and a large size with promising biological, mechanical properties. The cartilage tissue which constituted of chondrocytes and ECM produced by inoculated dedifferentiated chondrocytes to a high porous simple mold has arbitrary shapes, and did not need any biodegradable scaffold to control the shape. In contrast, scaffold-free cartilage tissue cultured under static conditions could not keep their shapes; it was fragile tissue. The possibility of scaffold-free organ design was suggested because the cartilage tissue increases steadily in size with culture time; indeed, the growth of cartilage tissue starting from an arbitrary shape might be predictable by mathematical expression. For tissue-engineered cartilage formation with arbitrary shapes, biochemical and mechanical properties, loading dedifferentiated chondrocytes with mechanical stress under existing cell-cell interactions has prominent effects. Therefore, our scaffold-free cartilage model loaded mechanical stress based on a simple mold system may be applicable for tissue-engineered cartilage.

[Development of novel biomaterials for bone and cartilage tissue engineering].

Three-dimensional porous scaffolds play an important role in cartilage and bone tissue engineering as temporary templates for transplanted cells to control their adhesion and proliferation to guide the formation of the new tissues. The scaffolds should be biodegradable, biocompatible, mechanically strong, and capable of being formed into desired shapes. Biodegradable synthetic polymers and naturally derived collagen have their respective advantages and drawbacks. Hybridization of the two kinds of polymers has been carried out to combine their respective advantages. This review will summarize some of the recently developed porous scaffolds having hybrid, biphasic and leakproof structures, and their application to bone and cartilage tissue engineering.

Redifferentiation of dedifferentiated bovine articular chondrocytes enhanced by cyclic hydrostatic pressure under a gas-controlled system.

Hydrostatic pressure is one of the most frequently used mechanical stimuli in chondrocyte experiments. A variety of hydrostatic pressure loading devices have been used in cartilage cell experiments. However, no gas-controlled system with other than a low pressure load was used up to this time. Hence we used a polyolefin bag from which gas penetration was confirmed. Chondrocytes were extracted from bovine normal knee joint cartilage. After 3 passages, dedifferentiated chondrocytes were applied to form a pellet. These pellets were cultured in chemically defined serum-free medium with ITS+Premix for 3 days. Then 5 MPa of cyclic hydrostatic pressure was applied at 0.5 Hz for 4 h per day for 4 days. Semiquantitative reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction showed a 5-fold increase in the levels of aggrecan mRNA due to cyclic hydrostatic pressure load (p<0.01). Type II collagen mRNA levels were also upregulated 4-fold by a cyclic hydrostatic pressure load (p<0.01). Type I collagen mRNA levels were similarly reduced in the cyclic hydrostatic pressure load group and in the control group. The partial oxygen pressure (PO2) and partial carbon dioxide pressure (PCO2) of the medium in the bag reached equilibrium in 24 h, and no significant change was observed for 3 days afterwards. PO2 and PCO2 were very well controlled. The loaded pellet showed better safranin O/fast green staining than did the control pellet. Metachromatic staining by Alcian blue staining was found to be stronger in the loaded than in the control pellets. The extracellular matrices excretion of loaded pellets was higher than that of control pellets. These results suggest that gas-controlled cyclic hydrostatic pressure enhanced the cartilaginous matrix formation of dedifferentiated cells differentiated in vitro.

Injectable in situ forming drug delivery system for cancer chemotherapy using a novel tissue adhesive: characterization and in vitro evaluation.

Injectable polymers that are biocompatible and biodegradable are important biomaterials for drug delivery system (DDS) and tissue engineering. We have already developed novel tissue adhesives consisting of biomacromolecules and organic acid derivatives with active ester groups. The resulting tissue adhesive forms in situ as a gel and has high bonding strength for living tissue as well as it has good biocompatibility and biodegradability. Here, we report on the physicochemical properties and in vitro evaluation of this novel tissue adhesive consisting of human serum albumin (HSA) and tartaric acid derivative (TAD) containing doxorubicin hydrochloride (DOX). The results of the measurement of physicochemical characteristics indicate that the gelation time and gel strength of HSA-TAD gels can be controlled according to the material composition. The bonding strength of HSA-TAD adhesives was found to be sufficient to adhere at focus and to correspond with the cross-linking density of HSA-TAD gels. Furthermore, the release of DOX from HSA-TAD gels was sustained for approximately 100 h in an in vitro evaluation. The novel tissue adhesive, therefore, is expected to be applicable for use as an injectable in situ forming DDS.

Feasibility of noninvasive evaluation of biophysical properties of tissue-engineered cartilage by using quantitative MRI.

The application of tissue-engineered cartilage in a clinical setting requires a noninvasive method to assess the biophysical and biochemical properties of the engineered cartilage. Since articular cartilage is composed of 70-80% water and has dense extracellular matrixes (ECM), it is considered that the condition of the water molecules in the tissue is correlated with its biomechanical property. Therefore, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) represents a potential approach to assess the biophysical property of the engineered cartilage. In this study, we test the hypothesis that quantitative MRI can be used as a noninvasive assessment method to assess the biophysical property of the engineered cartilage. To reconstruct a model of cartilaginous tissue, chondrocytes harvested from the humeral head of calves were embedded in an agarose gel and cultured in vitro up to 4 weeks. Equilibrium Young's moduli were determined from the stress relaxation tests. After mechanical testing, MRI-derived parameters (longitudinal relaxation time T1, transverse relaxation time T2, and water self-diffusion coefficient D) were measured. The equilibrium Young's modulus of the engineered cartilage showed a tendency to increase with an increase in the culture time, whereas T1 and D decreased. Based on a regression analysis, T1 and D showed a strong correlation with the equilibrium Young's modulus. The results showed that T1 and D values derived from the MRI measurements could be used to noninvasively monitor the biophysical properties of the engineered cartilage.

pH-responsive swelling behavior of collagen gels prepared by novel crosslinkers based on naturally derived di- or tricarboxylic acids.

The aim of this study was to compare the physicochemical properties of alkali-treated collagen (AlCol) gels prepared using two kinds of naturally derived crosslinkers made from citric and malic acids (CAD and MAD, respectively) that we have developed. From the crosslinking reaction between active ester groups and amino groups of AlCol, we successfully obtained AlCol gels, named AlCol-CAD and AlCol-MAD, prepared using CAD and MAD, respectively. The gelation time of the AlCol solution containing CAD initially decreased with increasing CAD concentration up to 70 mM, and then increased as the CAD concentration increased further. The gelation time reached its minimum and began to increase. On the other hand, for AlCol-MAD solution, gelation occurred within 40s at any MAD concentration. Moreover, the residual amino groups in AlCol-CAD and AlCol-MAD were found to decrease with increasing CAD or MAD concentrations, whereas increased residual carboxyl groups were detected only in the case of AlCol-CAD. The swelling ratio of AlCol-CAD significantly increased at CAD concentrations above 50mM. On the other hand, AlCol-MAD showed little increase in swelling ratio with increasing MAD concentration. Also, AlCol-CAD was swollen when the gels were immersed in a solution with high pH. On the other hand, no significant increase in swelling ratio was observed when AlCol-MAD was immersed in a similar solution. These results suggest that the different amounts of carboxyl groups in AlCol-CAD affected the swelling behavior of gels and that this pH-responsive AlCol-CAD has potential for drug delivery systems and tissue engineering.

Physicochemical characterization of densely packed poly(ethylene glycol) layer for minimizing nonspecific protein adsorption.

Modification of the surface with densely packed poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG) brush layer was studied to improve the protein repellent ability of the surface. A PEG-brushed layer was constructed on a gold substrate using a PEG possessing a mercapto group at the chain end. The density of the PEG brushed layer substantially increased with repetitive adsorption/rinse cycles of the PEG on the gold substrate, allowing dramatic reduction of nonspecific protein adsorption. Notably, formation of a short, filler layer of PEG (2 kDa) in the preconstructed longer PEG brushed layer (5 kDa) achieved high density brush and almost complete prevention of nonspecific protein adsorption. On the other hand, surface modification with only long PEG chain (5 kDa) showed lower PEG brush density regardless of repetitive immobilization. Detailed characterization of the PEGylated surface was done from the physicochemical (QCM, contact angle, and SPR) as well as the biological (protein adsorption) point of view to highlight the relation between the PEG brush density and the protein repellent ability. Densely packed PEG surface which showed great protein repellent ability, presented in this study, suggests promising utility as engineered biomaterials including high-throughput screening and clinical diagnostics.

Investigations on the interaction of tartaric acid derivative/human serum albumin tissue adhesive with J774A.1 mouse macrophage cells through SEM, IL-6 cytokine and gene expression techniques.

We developed a novel tissue adhesive consisting of human serum albumin (HSA) and tartaric acid derivative (TAD). Four different concentrations of TAD namely, 0.05 mM, 0.1 mM, 0.2 mM and 0.3 mM were mixed with 40%, 42% and 44% HSA individually and were made in the form of disks. J774A.1 mouse macrophage cells were seeded on top of these disks. The disks were pre-treated with sterile water and Eagle's medium before every seeding. All the seeding was incubated from 1 day to 3 days before making any investigations on it. SEM images were recorded and it was observed that these cells adhered to these materials very well. Mouse IL-6 cytokine expressions were studied using ELISA. It was seen from the cytokine expression results that the release of IL-6 was minimum at 0.3 mM TAD concentrations with 44% HSA disks. No significant difference was observed in the cytokine expressions of IL-6 at 42% and 44% HSA at all concentrations of TAD studied in this work. mRNA gene expressions of IL-6 were investigated using RT-PCR technique. In 40% HSA, the gene expression level of IL-6 gene did not change during 3-day-culture in the range of TAD concentration of 0.05 mmol to 0.2 mmol. However, 0.3 mM TAD suppressed the gene expression at all concentration of HSA. In 42% HSA, although 0.05 mM and 0.1 mM TAD did not affect the gene expression, 0.2 mM and 0.3 mM TAD induced the expression level with incubation time. In 44% HSA, all the concentration of TAD increased the expression level even though the cytokine expression levels were quite low. Hence it could be thought that the expression at the cytokine level is quite insignificant where as it is to be considered at the gene expression level. On the whole, 0.3 mM TAD with 44% HSA could be considered as a challenging material as a tissue adhesive material for use in the field of tissue engineering.

Investigations on inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) gene expression and SEM analysis during the interaction of a novel tissue adhesive with J774A.1 mouse macrophage cells.

A novel tissue adhesive consisting of human serum albumin (HSA) and tartaric acid derivative (TAD) was developed by us. Four different concentrations of TAD namely, 0.05 mmol, 0.1 mmol, 0.2 mmol and 0.3 mmol were mixed with 40%, 42% and 44% HSA individually and were made in the form of disks. J774A.1 mouse macrophage cells were seeded on top of these disks. The disks were pre-treated with sterile water and Eagle's medium before every seeding. All the seeding was incubated from 1 day to 3 days before making any investigations on it. SEM images were recorded and it was observed that these cells adhered to these materials very well. Nitric oxide activity was studied using nitrate/nitrite colorimetric assay method. It was observed that the total NO production is almost the same for 40% and 42% HSA for the respective concentrations of 0.05 mmol to 0.3 mmol TAD at all incubation times from 1 d to 3 d. On the other hand, the NO activity considerably decreases for 44% HSA at all concentrations from 0.05 to 0.3 mmol TAD. This trend is observed for all the three days of incubation. From the iNOS mRNA RT-PCR experiments, it was observed that no tendency of the gene expression of iNOS was significantly found and the expression level of this gene is not affected by the concentrations of both HSA and TAD. iNOS may be up-regulated by TAD in the early stage of culture (day 1) but no significant change was observed on day 2 and 3. On the whole 0.3 mmol TAD with 44% HSA could be considered as a challenging material as a tissue adhesive for use in the field of tissue engineering. Ours is the first report on iNOS gene expression on a tissue adhesive.

Synthesis of polypyridine-graft-PEG copolymer for protein repellent and stable interface.

Polypyridine grafted with poly(ethylene glycol) (Py-g-PEG) have been synthesized. Radical copolymerization of methyl-terminated PEG macromonomer with 4-pyridylmethyl methacrylate homogeneously proceeded and the obtained copolymer spontaneously adsorbs from aqueous solution onto gold surfaces, where the pyridine parts act as the multipoint anchor to the surface and the PEG parts provide the strong steric repulsion between the chains. As a result, the highly protein repellent and stable surface was constructed through multipoint pyridine attachment as compared with singlepoint pyridine attachment. Py-g-PEGs thus synthesized are promising material to functionalize metal and semiconductor material and to self-assemble into micelle in biotechnological and biomedical field.

Assessment of fixed charge density in regenerated cartilage by Gd-DTPA-enhanced MRI.

PURPOSE: Applying regenerated cartilage in a clinical setting requires noninvasive evaluation to detect the maturity of cartilage tissue. Magnetic resonance (MR) imaging of articular cartilage is well accepted and has been applied clinically in recent years. We attempt to establish a noninvasive method to evaluate the maturity of regenerated cartilage tissue using gadolinium-enhanced MR imaging. METHODS: To reconstruct cartilaginous tissue, we embedded articular chondrocytes harvested from bovine humeral head in agarose gel and cultured the cells in vitro up to 4 weeks. The fixed charge density (FCD) of the cartilage was determined using MRI gadolinium exclusion method. The sulfated glycosaminoglycan (sGAG) content was determined by dimethylmethylene blue dye-binding assay. RESULTS: The sGAG content and FCD of the regenerated cartilage increased with duration of culture. In the T1Gd maps, the [Gd-DTPA(2-)] in the specimen decreased, and the boundary between the sample disk and the bath solution of phosphate buffered saline (PBS) became clearer as time in culture increased. In the linear regression analysis, FCD and sGAG content correlated significantly. CONCLUSION: Gadolinium-enhanced MR imaging measurements can be useful predictors of the degree of cartilaginous tissue formation.

Culturing of skin fibroblasts in a thin PLGA-collagen hybrid mesh.

A thin biodegradable hybrid mesh of synthetic poly(DL-lactic-co-glycolic acid) (PLGA) and naturally derived collagen was used for three-dimensional culture of human skin fibroblasts. The hybrid mesh was constructed by forming web-like collagen microsponges in the openings of a PLGA knitted mesh. The behaviors of the fibroblasts on the hybrid mesh and PLGA knitted mesh were compared. The efficiency of cell seeding was much higher and the cells grew more quickly in the hybrid mesh than in the PLGA mesh. The fibroblasts in the PLGA mesh grew from the peripheral PLGA fibers toward the centers of the openings, while those in the hybrid mesh also grew from the collagen microsponges in the openings of the mesh resulting in a more homogenous growth. The proliferated cells and secreted extracellular matrices were more uniformly distributed in the hybrid mesh than in the PLGA mesh. Histological staining of in vitro cultured fibroblast/mesh implants indicated that the fibroblasts were distributed throughout the hybrid mesh and formed a uniform layer of dermal tissue having almost the same thickness as that of the hybrid mesh. However, the tissue formed in the PLGA mesh was thick adjacent to the PLGA fibers and thin in the center of the openings. Fibroblasts cultured in the hybrid mesh were implanted in the back of nude mouse. Dermal tissues were formed after 2 weeks and became epithelialized after 4 weeks. The results indicate that the web-like collagen microsponges formed in the openings of the PLGA knitted mesh increased the efficiency of cell seeding, improved cell distribution, and therefore facilitated rapid formation of dermal tissue having a uniform thickness. PLGA-collagen hybrid mesh may be useful for skin tissue engineering.