Novel Approach to Engineer Implantable Nasal Alar Cartilage Employing Marrow Precursor Cell Sheet and Biodegradable Scaffold
Purpose
Repair of nasal and auricular malformation remains an obstacle for clinicians because of poor regenerative capacity of cartilage and limitation of donor sites. In the current study, we developed a novel approach to regenerate implantable nasal alar cartilage by using marrow precursor cell (MPC) sheet and biodegradable scaffold of polylactic acid-polyglycolic acid copolymer (PLGA).
Materials and Methods
Rabbit MPCs were expanded and induced by transforming growth factor-β to improve chondrocyte phenotype. MPC sheets were obtained by continuous culture and used to wrap PLGA scaffold in the shape of the human nasal alar. The constructs were incubated in a spinner flask for 4 weeks, and cartilage formation was investigated by gross inspection and histological examination. The constructs were then implanted subcutaneously into a nude mouse. Specimens were harvested and analyzed 4 weeks after implantation.
Results
The results showed that cartilaginous tissue formed and PLGA absorbed during in vitro incubation. Histological analysis showed engineered cartilage consisted of evenly spaced lacunae embedded in a matrix rich in proteoglycans, and kept the initial shape of the nasal alar. Based on this “MPC sheet combining polymer strategy,” implantable nasal alar could be successfully regenerated.
Conclusion
This strategy has the advantage of high cell transplantation efficiency and great potential for clinical application.
⁎Associate Professor, Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, Qindu Hospital, the Fourth Military Medical University, Xi'an, People's Republic of China
†Student, Rege Lab of Tissue Engineering, Faculty of Life Science Northwest University, Xi'an, P.R. China
‡Associate Professor, Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, Qindu Hospital, the Fourth Military Medical University, Xi'an, P.R. China
§Associate Professor, Rege Lab of Tissue Engineering, Faculty of Life Science Northwest University, Xi'an, P.R. China
‖Professor, Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, Qindu Hospital, the Fourth Military Medical University, Xi'an, P.R. China
¶Resident, Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, Qindu Hospital, the Fourth Military Medical University, Xi'an, P.R. China
#Associate Professor, Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, Qindu Hospital, the Fourth Military Medical University, Xi'an, P.R. China
⁎⁎Associate Professor, Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, Qindu Hospital, the Fourth Military Medical University, Xi'an, P.R. China
††Professor, Rege Lab of Tissue Engineering, Faculty of Life Science Northwest University, Xi'an, P.R. China
‡‡Professor, Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, Qindu Hospital, the Fourth Military Medical University, Xi'an, P.R. China
Address correspondence and reprint requests to Dr Mao: Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, Qindu Hospital, the Fourth Military Medical University, Chang Le Xi Road 145#, Xi'an, P.R. China 710032
This study was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of P.R. China (30770542) and The Education Department of Shaanxi Province (07JK415).
ABSTRACT