Multichannel nerve guide conduits
(MCNGCs) have been widely studied
and exhibited outstanding nerve repair function. However, the effect
of the geometric structure of MCNGCs on the nerve repair function
was still not clear. Herein, we postulated that MCNGCs with different
inner surface area-to-volume ratios (ISA/V) of the channels inside
the nerve guide conduits (NGCs) would show different nerve repair
functions. Therefore, in current work, we constructed a series of
hydroxyethyl cellulose/soy protein sponge-based nerve conduit (HSSN)
with low, medium, and high ISA/V from hydroxyethyl cellulose (HEC)/soy
protein isolate (SPI) composite sponges, which were abbreviated as
HSSN-L, HSSN-M and HSSN-H, respectively. These NGCs were applied to
bridge and repair a 10 mm long sciatic nerve defect in a rat model.
Finally, the influence of ISA/V on nerve repair function was evaluated
by electrophysiological assessment, histological investigation, and
in vivo biodegradability testing. The results of electrophysiological
assessment and histological investigation showed that the regenerative
nerve tissues bridged with HSSN-H and HSSN-M had higher compound muscle
action potential amplitude ratio, higher percentage of positive NF200
and S100 staining, larger axon diameter, lower G-ratio,
and greater myelination thickness. Furthermore, the regenerative nerve
tissues bridged with HSSN-H also showed higher density of regenerated
myelinated nerve fibers and more number of myelin sheath layers. On
the whole, the repair efficiency of the peripheral nerve in HSSN-H
and HSSN-M groups might be better than that in HSSN-L. These results
indicated that higher ISA/V based on HEC/SPI composite sponge may
result in greater nerve repair functions. The conclusion provided
a probable guiding principle for the structural designs of NGCs in
the future.
Graphene oxide-modified electrospun polyvinyl alcohol nanofibrous scaffolds exhibit good biocompatibility and have potential application in skin tissue engineering.
Shape memory sponges with histocompatibility and biodegradability were constructed for subcutaneous defect filling and repair, which greatly reduced surgical incision.
Electrical stimulation (ES) can promote peripheral nerve repair. Nevertheless, the basis of ES generally requires conductive tissue engineering scaffolds. In this work, a neural tissue engineering scaffold is prepared from a series of conductive composites. The conductive composites, hydroxyethyl cellulose (HEC)/soy protein isolate (SPI)/polyaniline (PANI) films (HSPFs), were prepared by natural volatilization of HEC/SPI solution and then in-situ polymerization of aniline. Subsequently, the HSPFs films were confirmed by ATR-FTIR, water contact angle and SEM characterization. The conductivity of HSPFs reached 0.45 S/m superlatively and cell contact test showed that HSPFs had good cytocompatibility with PC12 cells. Most important of all, the neurite lengths and BDNF protein expression of PC12 cells on HSPFs can be promoted by ES. These results indicated that the ES may have potential application in nerve tissue engineering field through the conductive HSPFs films.
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