A dual-phase scaffold produced by rotary jet spinning and electrospinning for tendon tissue engineering

Abstract

Tendon is a highly hierarchical and oriented tissue that provides high mechanical strength. Tendon injuries lead to loss of function, disability, and a decrease in quality of life. The limited healing capacity of tendon tissue leads to scar tissue formation, which can affect mechanical strength and cause a re-tear. Tissue engineering can be the solution to achieving complete and proper healing of tendon. The developed constructs should be mechanically strong while maintaining a suitable environment for cell proliferation. In this study, a dual-phase fibrous scaffold was produced by combining fibrous mats produced by rotary jet spinning (RJS) and wet electrospinning (WES), with the intent of improving the healing capacity of the construct. Dual-phase scaffolds were formed from aligned poly(ϵ-caprolactone) (PCL) fibers (Shell) produced by RJS and randomly oriented PCL or PCL/gelatin fibers (Core) produced by WES systems. The scaffolds mimicked i) the repair phase of tendon healing, in which randomly-oriented collagen type III is deposited by randomly-oriented WES fibers and ii) the remodeling stage, in which aligned collagen type I fibers are deposited by aligned RJS fibers. In vitro studies showed that the presence of randomly-oriented core fibers inside the aligned PCL fiber shell of the dual-phase scaffold increased the initial attachment and viability of cells. Scanning electron microscopy and confocal microscopy analysis showed that the presence of aligned RJS fibers supported the elongation of cells through aligned fibers which improves tendon tissue healing by guiding oriented cell proliferation and extracellular matrix deposition. Tenogenic differentiation of human adipose-derived mesenchymal stem cells on scaffolds was studied when supplemented with growth differentiation factor 5 (GDF-5). GDF-5 treatment improved the viability, collagen type III deposition and scaffold penetration of human adipose derived stem cells. The developed FSPCL/ESPCL-Gel 3:1 scaffold (FS = centrifugal force spinning/RJS, ES = wet electrospinning, Gel = gelatin) sustained high mechanical strength, and improved cell viability and orientation while supporting tenogenic differentiation.

In Vitro and In Vivo Wound Healing Activity of Astragalus floccosus Boiss. (Fabaceae)

“…Histological findings also showed enhanced proliferation of fibroblasts and epithelialization and they were significantly better in RFF group than in silver and free groups. Shukla et al measured the hydroxyproline levels of wound tissues such as biomarker of amount of collagen (cellular repair building materials) [ 36 ]. In this current study, collagen was evaluated by Masson's trichrome stain and fibrosis indicated collagen bonds.…”

Advanced Nanofiber-Based Scaffolds for Achilles Tendon Regenerative Engineering

“…Numerous research has investigated various strategies for guiding stem cell phenotypic expression and manipulating tendon matrix properties using different fibrous scaffolds ( Guner et al, 2020 ; Sarıkaya and Gümüşderelioğlu, 2021 ; Zhu et al, 2021 ). The stem cells formed more mature tendinous tissue on aligned fibers and displayed greater osteogenic differentiation on random fibers ( Yin et al, 2015a ; Orr et al, 2015 ; Guner et al, 2020 ). The mechanical properties and self-assembly of insoluble collagen fibers are more similar to natural collagen ECM than those of soluble collagen.…”

Fibrous Systems as Potential Solutions for Tendon and Ligament Repair, Healing, and Regeneration

“…Fibrous scaffolds produced using various fiber‐based fabricating techniques are recognized to be suitable for replacing anisotropic tissues and to promote their healing. [ 94–99 ] The specific structure enables them to mimic the collagen organization, to guarantee mechanical support and tissue infiltration during the regeneration process. [ 100–103 ] In this article, we have mainly focused on the analysis of the utilization of fiber‐based architectures including strand fibers, woven, knitted, braided, and braid‐twisted fibrous structures as well as electrospun, wet‐spun and multilayered fibrous constructs.…”