SVF
Level D· Preclinical EvidenceLaboratory Study

Transcriptomic Analysis of Tendon Healing Using an Extracellular Matrix-Coated, Polyurethane Scaffold.

Rao Y., Lauwers M., Huang S., Zhang Y., Ker DFE., Tuan RS.

Laboratory Study on Tendon Injury, Rotator Cuff, Chronic Inflammation, published in Bioengineering (Basel) (2026) — summary generated from the PubMed abstract.

This page is generated from the PubMed record. The Thai description is an automated summary of bibliographic fields and the abstract, not a full translation, and is not medical advice.

Study type
Laboratory Study
Journal
Bioengineering (Basel) (2026)
Country
Switzerland
Reported sample size
—
PMID
42351897
DOI
10.3390/bioengineering13060652

Abstract (original English)

Large rotator cuff tendon injuries pose a dual clinical challenge: poor inherent healing capacity and high mechanical demands. To address this, we have developed a bifunctional scaffold that combines a slow-degrading, mechanically robust polyurethane core coated with tendon-derived extracellular matrix (ECM) extract to provide both structural support and regenerative cues. In a rabbit model of supraspinatus tendon injury, this ECM-polyurethane scaffold facilitated healing of critical-sized defects, resulting in aligned, tendon-like tissue with improved biomechanical properties. This study further explored the tendon healing mechanisms of the ECM-polyurethane scaffold in a rabbit model of large supraspinatus tendon injury using transcriptomic and qPCR analyses. At one month post-surgery, while both ECM-coated and uncoated polyurethane scaffolds initially provoked similar inflammatory responses when compared to healthy tendon, their healing pathways diverged significantly. The control polyurethane scaffold activated pathways associated with adipose tissue development, a non-functional outcome, whereas the ECM-coated scaffold actively directed healing toward tendon regeneration. These results demonstrate that the ECM coating is the critical factor driving divergent healing responses in polyurethane scaffolds, even though their underlying biomechanical properties are similar. This

What this study does not prove

  • • This study does not prove SVF is an approved treatment or a replacement for standard care.
  • • This is preclinical work; animal or laboratory results cannot be applied to humans.

Evidence level

Evidence comes from animal or laboratory studies and has not been confirmed in humans.

How we grade evidence
ShoulderTendon InjuryRotator CuffChronic Inflammation
View on PubMedDOI

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