Development of mature cartilage constructs using novel three‐dimensional porous scaffolds for enhanced repair of osteochondral defects

Abstract

In this study, we successfully developed two types of volume-reduced three-dimensional scaffolds, including cushion- and cylinder-shape scaffolds, fabricated from chitosan-based hyaluronic acid hybrid polymer fibers. Using these scaffolds combined with a bioreactor system, we regenerated histologically and mechanically mature cartilage constructs. The final goal of this study was to clarify the ability of this engineered cartilage construct to induce cartilage repair in osteochondral defects. The mature cartilage constructs regenerated with two types of scaffolds were implanted into 5-mm diameter osteochondral defects in the patellar groove of rabbits. At 12 weeks after implantation, the reparative tissues consisted of hyaline-like cartilage with evidence of stable fusion to adjacent native cartilage and normal reconstitution of subchondral bone. The histological score of these tissues significantly outranked the value of untreated tissue. Biomechanically, compression modulus of reparative tissue at 12 weeks postoperatively was comparative to that of normal articular cartilage. Our results indicate that the implantation of constructs with mature cartilage have potential as a better approach for joint resurfacing.

Sulfation patterns of exogenous chondroitin sulfate affect chondrogenic differentiation of ATDC5 cells

“…Many studies have been conducted with the aim of developing effective scaffolds [2]. Moreover, various molecules have been applied to scaffolds to try to modify them and create a suitable microenvironment in which cells can differentiate properly and maintain chondrogenic properties [3].…”

Chitosan-Based Hyaluronic Acid Hybrid Polymer Fibers as a Scaffold Biomaterial for Cartilage Tissue Engineering

“…After one-week static culture, these samples were transferred into a disposable high aspect ratio vessel bioreactor (HARV, 50 mL; Synthecon, Inc., Houston, TX, U.S.) and dynamically cultured for a further four or seven weeks. Table 5 summarizes biochemical and biomechanical evaluations of engineered cartilage in both material groups at each time point [18]. At eight weeks after cultivation, macroscopic ( Figure 6) and histological ( Figure 7) findings suggested successful hyaline-like cartilage regeneration with rich GAG and type II collagen products.…”

“…One of the ideal strategies for addressing this issue is to reduce the volume of scaffold material in engineered constructs with mechanically mature cartilage. For this strategy, we developed two types of 3D scaffolds fabricated with the chitosan-based HA hybrid polymer fibers [18]. One was a cushion-type scaffold, consisting of two sheets, which were 8 × 8 mm wide and 1 mm thick.…”

“…Unfortunately, most scaffolds developed to date for cartilage regeneration conform to only one of these requirements. To meet these biomechanical and biological requirements, the authors have developed a novel three-dimensional (3D) scaffold fabricated from chitosan-based hyaluronic acid (HA) hybrid polymer fibers [16][17][18]. Previous studies have shown that cellular functions differ in 3D and two-dimensional culture systems [19,20].…”

“…This review is based on the data derived from our previous in vivo and in vitro studies [16][17][18]21]. In this paper, statistical comparisons were performed using one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) and Fisher's PLSD tests.…”