Articular Cartilage Repair by Three-Dimensional Seeding of Bone Marrow Stromal Cells Encapsulated in Type II Collagen Gel into Demineralized Bone Matrix Scaffolds

摘要

Objective To examine the potential usefulness of type II collagen-encapsulated bone marrow stromal cells (BMSCs) orientated in demineralized bone matrix (DBM) scaffolds in the articular cartilage repair of rabbits. Methods Articular cartilage defects were created in 27 New Zealand White rabbits with body weight of about 2.5 kg. Model rabbits were randomly assigned into three treatment groups (n = 9 per group). Experimental group was implanted with collagen-BMSC-DBM scaffold. Experimental control group was treated with collagen-DBM scaffold only, while the negative control received no treatment. At 4, 8, and 12 weeks postoperative 3 rabbits from each group were sacrificed. Gross appearances of the articular samples were photographed. The 12-week samples were further examined using Hematoxylin and Eosin (H&E) staining and safranin O staining, following by Wakitani scoring. Results When examined at 12 weeks after the implantation of constructs, cartilage defects of the experimental group were repaired with the tissue exhibited a smooth surface and be well-integrated with the circumjacent native cartilage. The repaired cartilage also demonstrated positive safranin O staining. For the experimental control group, the defects were partially repaired with an identifiable interface seen between the repaired and native cartilage tissues. For the negative controls, no repair could be seen and the defects were only filled with fibrous tissue. The Wakitani score of the experimental group was 1.89 +/- 0.42, while that of the experimental control and negative control groups was 5.96 +/- 0.65 and 12.83 +/- 0.58, respectively. The differences in Wakitani score between different treatments were statistical significant (P < 0.05). Conclusion The present study demonstrates DBM scaffold combined with type II collagen-encapsulated BMSC can be a potential tissue engineering approach for the repair of articular cartilage defect.