Current Concepts in Meniscus Tissue Engineering and Repair

摘要

The meniscus is the most commonly injured structure in the human knee. Meniscus deficiency has been shown to lead to advanced osteoarthritis (OA) due to abnormal mechanical forces, and replacement strategies for this structure have lagged behind other tissue engineering endeavors. The challenges include the complex three-dimensional structure with individualized size parameters, the significant compressive, tensile and shear loads encountered, and the poor blood supply. In this progress report, we provide a review of the current clinical treatments for different types of meniscal injury. We discuss the state-of-the-art research in cellular therapies and novel cell-sources for these therapies. We present the clinically available cell-free biomaterial implants and the current progress on cell-free biomaterial implants and cell-based tissue engineering strategies for the repair and replacement of meniscus, and identify the current challenges. Tissue-engineered meniscal biocomposite implants may provide an alternative solution for the treatment of meniscal injury to prevent OA in the long run, because of the limitations of the existing therapies.