Hyaluronan open-pit nanofibrils with spontaneous cell-matrix assembly for advanced osteochondral defect repair.

Evidence from laboratory and animal studies provides groundwork for understanding mechanisms and potential before human studies continue.

• Level A · Stronger Clinical Evidence
• Level B · Emerging clinical evidence with positive signals
• Level C · Early human research exploring benefits
• Level D · Scientific groundwork from lab and animal studies
• Emerging · Emerging topic under active research

Abstract (original English)

While hyaluronic acid (HA) inherently promotes chondrogenesis, its hydrophilic character and lack of receptor-specific ligands impede robust cell adhesion - underscoring the need for nanofibrous matrices that emulate the extracellular microenvironment to enhance cell - matrix interactions. Therefore, we designed HA-based nanofibrils (NFs) with a high capability of self-assembly with adipose - derived stem cells (ADSCs) to enhance cell - matrix interaction, thereby promoting chondrogenesis. To address the electrospinning challenges arising from the high viscosity and hydrophilicity of hyaluronic acid (HA), a co-axial electrospinning technique was employed to fabricate core - sheath nanofibers consisting of a polycaprolactone (PCL)/poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG) sheath and an HA core (PCL/PEG@HA nanofibers). After chemical crosslinking of the HA core and the following etching of PEG on the sheath, the engineered nanofibers exhibited considerable HA displays on the surfaces (PCL@HA nanofibers). The fragmented nanofibers (PCL@HA NFs) could be self-assembled into cells - NFs matrix with ADSCs. Owing to HA exposure on the NFs, ADSCs exhibited higher cell proliferation and enhanced chondrogenic differentiation when the spontaneously assembled matrix of ADSCs - PCL@HA NFs was incubated in a reduced chondrogenic medium. In vivo investigations also validated the chondrogenic effects of PCL@

Evidence level

Evidence from laboratory and animal studies provides groundwork for understanding mechanisms and potential before human studies continue.

Browse all related research

Filter the research library by this study's title keywords, author, or publication year.