Evaluation of Biodegradable Hydrogels in a Femoral Bone Plug Model

摘要

The aim of this study was to investigate biological responses when biodegradable PBAE hydrogels were implanted in non-critically sized femoral defects in rats. Three different PBAE hydrogels were fabricated to compare a wide range of degradation times. Both microCT and histological analysis of bone formation in the defects revealed similar growth patterns for empty defects and those filled with H6 or AH6, which may indicate that these two faster degrading PBAE hydrogels do not interfere with normal bone repair. Importantly, the lack of any obvious signs of inflammation or fibrous encapsulation suggest that these materials remain inert as they degraded. Interestingly, there were no signs of fibrous encapsulation in the A6-filled defects even through 12 weeks. In fact, the A6-filled defects showed bone growth along all margins of the defect where hydrogel resided, suggesting that PBAE hydrogels may exhibit osteoconductive properties allowing for new bone to grow on the surface of the gels.