Reconstruction of peripheral nerves using acellular nerve grafts with implanted cultured Schwann cells

Frerichs, O.; Fansa, Hisham; Schicht, Christoph; Wolf, Gerald; Schneider, Wolfgang; Keilhoff, Gerburg

doi:10.1002/micr.10056

Cited by 59 publications

(34 citation statements)

References 20 publications

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“…In previous studies, Schwann cells (26,27), and neurotrophic factors (28,29) have been placed into grafts in order to improve nerve regeneration. A previous study demonstrated that grafts containing Schwann cells were able to provide a better environment for nerve regeneration (30); conversely, other studies demonstrated that acellular nerves had the same ability to support axon regeneration (31,32).…”

Section: A B C a B Cmentioning

confidence: 99%

A comparative study of acellular nerve xenografts and allografts in repairing rat facial nerve defects

Huang

Xiao

Liu

et al. 2015

Molecular Medicine Reports

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Abstract. Acellular nerves are composed of a basal lamina tube, which retains sufficient bioactivity to promote axon regeneration, thereby repairing peripheral nerve gaps. However, the clinical application of acellular allografts has been restricted due to its limited availability. To investigate whether xenografts, a substitute to allograft acellular nerves in abundant supply, could efficiently promote nerve regeneration, rabbit and rat acellular nerve grafts were used to reconstruct 1 cm defects in Wistar rat facial nerves. Autologous peroneal nerve grafts served as a positive control group. A total of 12 weeks following the surgical procedure, the axon number, myelinated axon number, myelin sheath thickness, and nerve conduction velocity of the rabbit and rat-derived acellular nerve grafts were similar, whereas the fiber diameter of the rabbit-derived acellular xenografts decreased, as compared with those of rat-derived acellular allografts. Autografts exerted superior effects on nerve regeneration; however, no significant difference was observed between the axon number in the autograft group, as compared with the two acellular groups. These results suggested that autografts perform better than acellular nerve grafts, and chemically extracted acellular allografts and xenografts have similar effects on the regeneration of short facial nerve defects.

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Section: A B C a B Cmentioning

confidence: 99%

A comparative study of acellular nerve xenografts and allografts in repairing rat facial nerve defects

Huang

Xiao

Liu

et al. 2015

Molecular Medicine Reports

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“…Thus, experimental strategies have focused on creating environments that promote axonal outgrowth, including combinations of permissive scaffolds (e.g., decellularized grafts or hydrogels), extracellular matrix, trophic factors, and glial or stem cells. [5][6][7][8][9][10][11][12][13][14] Anisotropic properties are important to direct axon growth, and are typically achieved via gradients (e.g., neurotrophic or extracellular matrix), longitudinally aligned fibers, or tailored porosity. [15][16][17][18] In practice, axonal guidance cues and anisotropy are typically provided by a choreographed organization of Schwann cells (SCs), either delivered or endogenous, which form aligned regenerative columns (i.e., Bands of Bungner).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Long-Term Survival and Integration of Transplanted Engineered Nervous Tissue Constructs Promotes Peripheral Nerve Regeneration

Huang

Cullen

Browne

et al. 2009

Tissue Engineering Part A

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Although peripheral nerve injury is a common consequence of trauma or surgery, there are insufficient means for repair. In particular, there is a critical need for improved methods to facilitate regeneration of axons across major nerve lesions. Here, we engineered transplantable living nervous tissue constructs to provide a labeled pathway to guide host axonal regeneration. These constructs consisted of stretch-grown, longitudinally aligned living axonal tracts inserted into poly(glycolic acid) tubes. The constructs (allogenic) were transplanted to bridge an excised segment of sciatic nerve in the rat, and histological analyses were performed at 6 and 16 weeks posttransplantation to determine graft survival, integration, and host regeneration. At both time points, the transplanted constructs were found to have maintained their pretransplant geometry, with surviving clusters of graft neuronal somata at the extremities of the constructs spanned by tracts of axons. Throughout the transplanted region, there was an intertwining plexus of host and graft axons, suggesting that the transplanted axons mediated host axonal regeneration across the lesion. By 16 weeks posttransplant, extensive myelination of axons was observed throughout the transplant region. Further, graft neurons had extended axons beyond the margins of the transplanted region, penetrating into the host nerve. Notably, this survival and integration of the allogenic constructs occurred in the absence of immunosuppression therapy. These findings demonstrate the promise of living tissue-engineered axonal constructs to bridge major nerve lesions and promote host regeneration, potentially by providing axon-mediated axonal outgrowth and guidance.

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“…9,11 An ideal scaffold should be structurally similar to a native nerve and compatible with both seed cells and host cells. We assumed that the nerve matrices might provide an optimal framework for the construction of TENGs.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Conduits made of synthetic polyesters have been used to construct TENGs. [9][10][11] However, their components and three-dimensional structures are far different from those of peripheral nerves. Furthermore, potential adverse effects on seeds and host cells associated with polyester degradation should be taken into account.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Human peripheral nerve‐derived scaffold for tissue‐engineered nerve grafts: Histology and biocompatibility analysis

Yang¹,

Liu²,

Zhu³

et al. 2010

J Biomed Mater Res

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Human acellular nerve grafts (ANGs) have been rarely used to construct tissue-engineered nerves compared to the animal-derived ANGs, and their potential clinical applications were relatively unknown. In this study, it was aimed to investigate the structure and components of a scaffold derived from human peripheral nerve and evaluate its biocompatibility. The human peripheral nerves were processed to prepare the scaffolds by chemical extraction. Light and electron microscopy were carried out to analyze scaffold structure and components. The analysis of cytotoxicity, hemolysis, and skin sensitization were performed to evaluate their biocompatibility. It was shown that Schwann cells and axons, identified by S-100 and neurofilament (NF) expression, were absent, and the scaffolds were cell-free and rich in collagen-I and laminin whose microarchitecture was similar to the fibrous framework of human peripheral nerves. It was revealed from biocompatibility tests that the scaffolds had very mild cytotoxicity and hemolysis, whereas skin sensitization was not observed. The constructed human peripheral nerve-derived scaffolds with well biocompatibility for clinical practice, which were cell-free and possess the microstructure and extracellular matrix (ECM) of a human nerve, might be an optimal scaffold for tissue-engineered nerve grafts in human.

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Reconstruction of peripheral nerves using acellular nerve grafts with implanted cultured Schwann cells

Cited by 59 publications

References 20 publications

A comparative study of acellular nerve xenografts and allografts in repairing rat facial nerve defects

A comparative study of acellular nerve xenografts and allografts in repairing rat facial nerve defects

Long-Term Survival and Integration of Transplanted Engineered Nervous Tissue Constructs Promotes Peripheral Nerve Regeneration

Human peripheral nerve‐derived scaffold for tissue‐engineered nerve grafts: Histology and biocompatibility analysis

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