Volume 14, Issue 2 pp. 355-368
RESEARCH ARTICLE

Design, construction, and biological testing of an implantable porous trilayer scaffold for repairing osteoarthritic cartilage

Yaima Campos

Yaima Campos

Translational Nanobiomaterials and Imaging, Department of Radiology, Leiden University Medical Centre, Leiden, The Netherlands

Biomaterials Center, University of Havana, Havana, Cuba

Search for more papers by this author
Francisco J. Sola

Francisco J. Sola

Biomaterials Center, University of Havana, Havana, Cuba

Search for more papers by this author
Amisel Almirall

Amisel Almirall

Biomaterials Center, University of Havana, Havana, Cuba

Laboratory of Biomaterials, Department of Regeneration Science and Engineering, Institute for Frontier Life and Medical Sciences, Kyoto University, Kyoto, Japan

Search for more papers by this author
Gastón Fuentes

Gastón Fuentes

Translational Nanobiomaterials and Imaging, Department of Radiology, Leiden University Medical Centre, Leiden, The Netherlands

Biomaterials Center, University of Havana, Havana, Cuba

Laboratory of Biomaterials, Department of Regeneration Science and Engineering, Institute for Frontier Life and Medical Sciences, Kyoto University, Kyoto, Japan

Bioforge Lab, Campus Miguel Delibes, CIBER-BBN, Universidad de Valladolid, Edificio LUCIA, Valladolid, Spain

Search for more papers by this author
Christina Eich

Christina Eich

Translational Nanobiomaterials and Imaging, Department of Radiology, Leiden University Medical Centre, Leiden, The Netherlands

Search for more papers by this author
Ivo Que

Ivo Que

Translational Nanobiomaterials and Imaging, Department of Radiology, Leiden University Medical Centre, Leiden, The Netherlands

Search for more papers by this author
Alan Chan

Alan Chan

Percuros B.V., Leiden, The Netherlands

Search for more papers by this author
Eric Kaijzel

Eric Kaijzel

Translational Nanobiomaterials and Imaging, Department of Radiology, Leiden University Medical Centre, Leiden, The Netherlands

Search for more papers by this author
Yasuhiko Tabata

Yasuhiko Tabata

Laboratory of Biomaterials, Department of Regeneration Science and Engineering, Institute for Frontier Life and Medical Sciences, Kyoto University, Kyoto, Japan

Search for more papers by this author
Luis Quintanilla

Luis Quintanilla

Bioforge Lab, Campus Miguel Delibes, CIBER-BBN, Universidad de Valladolid, Edificio LUCIA, Valladolid, Spain

Search for more papers by this author
José C. Rodríguez-Cabello

José C. Rodríguez-Cabello

Bioforge Lab, Campus Miguel Delibes, CIBER-BBN, Universidad de Valladolid, Edificio LUCIA, Valladolid, Spain

Search for more papers by this author
Luis J. Cruz

Corresponding Author

Luis J. Cruz

Translational Nanobiomaterials and Imaging, Department of Radiology, Leiden University Medical Centre, Leiden, The Netherlands

Correspondence

Luis J. Cruz, Translational Nanomedicine and Imaging Group, Department of Radiology, C2-S-room 187, Leiden University Medical Center, Albinusdreef 2, 2333 ZA Leiden, The Netherlands.

Email: [email protected]

Search for more papers by this author
First published: 11 December 2019
Citations: 7

Abstract

Various tissue engineering systems for cartilage repair have been designed and tested over the past two decades, leading to the development of many promising cartilage grafts. However, no one has yet succeeded in devising an optimal system to restore damaged articular cartilage. Here, the design, assembly, and biological testing of a porous, chitosan/collagen-based scaffold as an implant to repair damaged articular cartilage is reported. Its gradient composition and trilayer structure mimic variations in natural cartilage tissue. One of its layers includes hydroxyapatite, a bioactive component that facilitates the integration of growing tissue on local bone in the target area after scaffold implantation. The scaffold was evaluated for surface morphology; rheological performance (storage, loss, complex, and time-relaxation moduli at 1 kHz); physiological stability; in vitro activity and cytotoxicity (on a human chondrocyte C28 cell line); and in vivo performance (tissue growth and biodegradability), in a murine model of osteoarthritis. The scaffold was shown to be mechanically resistant and noncytotoxic, favored tissue growth in vivo, and remained stable for 35 days postimplantation in mice. These encouraging results highlight the potential of this porous chitosan/collagen scaffold for clinical applications in cartilage tissue engineering.

CONFLICT OF INTEREST

There are no conflicts to declare.

The full text of this article hosted at iucr.org is unavailable due to technical difficulties.