A Novel Bone Marrow Stimulation Technique Augmented by Administration of Ultrapurified Alginate Gel Enhances Osteochondral Repair in a Rabbit Model

Abstract

Cartilage injuries are a common health problem resulting in the loss of daily activities. Bone marrow stimulation technique, one of the surgical techniques for the cartilage injuries, is characterized by technical simplicity and less invasiveness. However, it has been shown to result in fibrous or fibrocartilaginous repair with inferior long-term results. This study focused on using ultrapurified alginate gel (UPAL gel) as an adjuvant scaffold in combination with a bone marrow stimulation technique. The objective of this study was to assess the efficacy of a bone marrow stimulation technique augmented by UPAL gel in a rabbit osteochondral defect model. To achieve this goal, three experimental groups were prepared as follows: defects without intervention, defects treated with a bone marrow stimulation technique, and defects treated with a bone marrow stimulation technique augmented by UPAL gel. The macroscopic and histological findings of the defects augmented by UPAL gel improved significantly more than those of the others at 16 weeks postoperatively. The combination technique elicited hyaline-like cartilage repair, unlike bone marrow stimulation technique alone. This combination procedure has the potential of improving clinical outcomes after use of a bone marrow stimulation technique for articular cartilage injuries.

In Vivo Articular Cartilage Regeneration Using Human Dental Pulp Stem Cells Cultured in an Alginate Scaffold: A Preliminary Study

“…Stained sections were analyzed under an optical microscope (DM 4000B; Leica) and photographed using the Leica DFC 420 camera. Collagen fiber orientation was analyzed under polarized light using an optical microscope (DM 4000B; Leica) as described previously [ 12 ].…”

“…Nonpharmacological regenerative techniques have been developed for regeneration of articular cartilage according to the 3R paradigm: reconstruction, repair, and replacement [ 10 ]. Microfracture as well as autogenic (mosaicplasty) and allogenic tissue transplantation has shown positive results in short term but poor outcomes in long term, resulting in poor hyaline cartilage regeneration that is replaced by fibrocartilage [ 11 , 12 ]. Autologous chondrocyte implantation has shown better results in terms of regeneration not only in experimental studies but also in clinical trials in which this methodology has been compared with microfracture [ 13 ].…”

An acellular bioresorbable ultra-purified alginate gel promotes intervertebral disc repair: A preclinical proof-of-concept study

“…Here, we report the use of an acellular bioresorbable ultra-purified alginate (UPAL) gel implantation system to prevent post-discectomy IVD degeneration. The UPAL gel is highly purified with reduced endotoxicity (<1/10,000 compared to conventional alginate) that could be used for any biomedical or clinical applications [ [26] , [27] , [28] ]. In addition, our implantation strategy uses CaCl 2 surface coverage for rapid curing (~5 min) of the alginate gel, which then conforms to variously shaped defects without covering or suturing the AF.…”

Chondrogenic differentiation of mouse induced pluripotent stem cells using the three‐dimensional culture with ultra‐purified alginate gel

“…The endotoxin level of this biomaterial was drastically reduced by our own developed ultra‐purified technology . This leads to enhancing the chondrogenesis from BMSCs and promoting reparative process of cartilaginous lesions . Based on the previous observations, we hypothesized that a 3D culture using this ultrapurified alginate gel (UPAL gel) could enhance the chondrogenesis from iPSCs.…”

“…24 This leads to enhancing the chondrogenesis from BMSCs and promoting reparative process of cartilaginous lesions. [24][25][26][27][28] Based on the previous observations, we hypothesized that a 3D culture using this ultrapurified alginate gel (UPAL gel) could enhance the chondrogenesis from iPSCs. The specific purposes of this study were to clarify the capability of UPAL gel to differentiate mouse iPSCs into chondrocyte-like cells by comparing with that of conventional grade alginate gel and a high-density micromass culture and to determine the optimal differentiation stage of iPSCs to embed them into UPAL gels for better chondrogenesis.…”