A Collagen and Silk Scaffold for Improved Healing of the Tendon and Bone Interface in a Rabbit Model

Abstract

BackgroundThe study aimed to develop a novel orthopedic surgical scaffold made of collagen and silk to repair the tendon and bone interface, and to investigate its influence on tendon and bone healing in a rabbit model.Material/MethodsFour types of surgical scaffold were prepared, including a random collagen scaffold (RCS), an aligned collagen scaffold (ACS), a random collagen scaffold combined with knitted silk (RCSS), and an aligned collagen scaffold combined with knitted silk (ACSS). Rabbit bone marrow stem cells (BMSCs) were cultured and seeded onto the RCS and ACS scaffold. The animal model included four-month-old female New Zealand White rabbits (N=20) that underwent drilling into the rotator cuff of the left supraspinatus muscle tendon, randomized into the ACSS and RCSS groups.ResultsRabbit BMSCs adhered to and proliferated on the RCS and ACS in vitro. Transcription levels of the COL I, COL III, and tenascin (TCN) genes were significantly increased in the ACS group compared with the RCS group. Transcription levels of COL I, runt-related transcription factor-2 (RUNX-2) and bone morphogenetic protein-2 (BMP-2) were significantly increased in the RCS group compared with the ACS group. RCSS and ACSS implanted in the rabbit models for eight weeks resulted in more regenerative tissue in the RCSS group compared with the ACSS group, with new cartilage at the tendon and bone interface at 12 weeks.ConclusionsA collagen and silk scaffold improved healing of the tendon and bone interface in a rabbit model.

In Vitro Innovation of Tendon Tissue Engineering Strategies

“…Different traditional techniques have been used to fabricate scaffolds for tendon regeneration including sponges [ 341 , 342 , 343 ], freeze-drying [ 323 , 324 , 344 , 345 ], supercritical fluid processing [ 346 , 347 ], extruding [ 348 ], electrochemically aligned collagen [ 319 , 349 , 350 ], and electrospinning [ 322 , 325 , 332 , 333 , 351 , 352 ]. Recently, 3D bioprinting has emerged as an novel technique in the field of tissue engineering aiming at fabricating organized scaffolds with complex shapes [ 352 , 353 , 354 , 355 , 356 ].…”

Collagen scaffold for mesencyhmal stem cell from stromal vascular fraction (biocompatibility and attachment study): Experimental paper

“…Collagen has a better viability test with 93.237 almost the same with the control group. It show that collagen much more better for biocompatibility compare to oxidize cellulose [ 7 ].…”

Biomimetic strategies for tendon/ligament-to-bone interface regeneration

“… Material Advantages Disadvantages Ref. Synthetic polymers PLLA, PGA, PLGA ∙Excellent mechanical properties ∙Biodegradability ∙Ease of processing ∙Acidic degradation products [ 12 , 60 , [63] , [64] , [65] ] PET ∙High mechanical property ∙Non-degradable ∙Inferior biocompatibility [ 62 ] Natural polymers Silk ∙Biocompatibility ∙Slow degradability ∙Excellent mechanical properties ∙Poor cell recruitment properties [ 61 , 66 , 67 ] Collagen ∙Intrinsic biocompatibility ∙Biodegradability ∙Insufficient mechanical strength [ 61 , 66 , 67 ] Calcium phosphate biomaterials HA ∙Excellent osteoconductivity ∙Slow biodegradation [ 68 ] CPS ∙Excellent osteoconductivity ∙Superior biodegradability [ 68 ] CaP cement ∙Excellent osteoconductivity ∙Injectable ∙Slow biodegradation [ 69 ] PLLA, poly- l -lactic acid; PGA, polyglycolic acid; PLGA, poly (lactide-co-glycolid acid); PET, polyethylene terephthalate; HA, hydroxyapatite; CPS, calcium phosphate silicate ceramic; CaP, calcium phosph...…”

“…Similarly, Qian et al seeded BMSCs onto random collagen scaffold and aligned collagen scaffold. The aligned scaffold promoted tenogenic induction while the random scaffold promoted osteogenic induction [ 66 ]. Among a variety of topographical cues, the fiber alignment at the enthesis has been widely studied in the interface tissue engineering.…”