Plant Tissues as 3D Natural Scaffolds for Adipose, Bone and Tendon Tissue Regeneration

Abstract

Decellularized tissues are a valid alternative as tissue engineering scaffolds, thanks to the three-dimensional structure that mimics native tissues to be regenerated and the biomimetic microenvironment for cells and tissues growth. Despite decellularized animal tissues have long been used, plant tissue decellularized scaffolds might overcome availability issues, high costs and ethical concerns related to the use of animal sources. The wide range of features covered by different plants offers a unique opportunity for the development of tissue-specific scaffolds, depending on the morphological, physical and mechanical peculiarities of each plant. Herein, three different plant tissues (i.e., apple, carrot, and celery) were decellularized and, according to their peculiar properties (i.e., porosity, mechanical properties), addressed to regeneration of adipose tissue, bone tissue and tendons, respectively. Decellularized apple, carrot and celery maintained their porous structure, with pores ranging from 70 to 420 µm, depending on the plant source, and were stable in PBS at 37 • C up to 7 weeks. Different mechanical properties (i.e., E apple = 4 kPa, E carrot = 43 kPa, E celery = 590 kPa) were measured and no indirect cytotoxic effects were demonstrated in vitro after plants decellularization. After coating with poly-L-lysine, apples supported 3T3-L1 preadipocytes adhesion, proliferation and adipogenic differentiation; carrots supported MC3T3-E1 pre-osteoblasts adhesion, proliferation and osteogenic differentiation; celery supported L929 cells adhesion, proliferation and guided anisotropic cells orientation. The versatile features of decellularized plant tissues and their potential for the regeneration of different tissues are proved in this work.

Seaweed cellulose scaffolds derived from green macroalgae for tissue engineering

“…SC observed in this study consist of an intermediate pore size (10–30 µm) (Fig. 3 B), which is larger than bacterial nanocellulose (BCN) pore size 1.66–98.7 nm 10 (defined as the space between the BCN nanofibers), while smaller than terrestrial plant-based cellulose, for example apple, carrots and celery with pore sizes that ranges between 70 and 420 µm 9 , and is also smaller than custom collagen sponges (50–200 µm), such as the BioMatrix (SpongeCol). Scaffolds with various pore size (50–350 µm), were described as macroporous, with pore sizes that exceed the cell size.…”

“…However, there is still an ongoing search for alternative, inexpensive matrices that could replace native tissue permanently 1 . In recent years cellulose-based matrices have ignited novel bio-based scaffold fabrication 3 , 7 – 9 . However, seaweed cellulose is still poorly investigated.…”

“…Moreover, cellulose hydrophilicity and fluid uptake could provide a moist construct for wound healing environment 6 , while promoting interaction with negatively charged cell surface, and thus advancing cell adhesion and proliferation 3 . Cellulose sources in tissue engineering range from natural polymers derived from plants 7 – 9 and bacterial nanocellulose (BNC) 10 , to synthetic modified polymers 11 . These allow the diverse and versatile range of cellulose mechanical, physical, and structural properties such as morphologies, as a stand-alone or as a composite reinforcement material 3 .…”

“…However, in order to fully fabricate cellulose-based biomimetic tissues that require specific cell–matrix interactions, further investigations of cellulose structural properties that could mimic native tissues are studied. For instance, cellulose derived from apple hypanthium was studied for adipose tissue engineering, carrot for bone tissue engineering, celery for tendons 9 and BNC for burns and chronic wounds treatments 10 or in vivo implantations 12 .…”

Application of the Tissue-Engineered Plant Scaffold as a Vascular Patch

“… 13 Decellularized apple, carrot, and celery-derived tissues as scaffolds have been investigated for the regeneration of more tissue types, such as adipose tissue, bone tissue, and tendons. 20 However, these pioneer studies are all in vitro studies, and in vivo studies are lacking. Because the vascular graft heals via a complex process, we implanted the decellularized plant as a vascular patch and demonstrated its potential future applications.…”