Tissue engineering can provide alternatives to current methods for tracheal reconstruction. Here we describe an approach for ectopic engineering of vascularized trachea based on the implantation of co-cultured scaffolds surrounded by a muscle flap. Poly(L-lactic-co-glycolic acid) (PLGA) or poly(ε-caprolactone) (PCL) scaffolds were seeded with chondrocytes, bone marrow stem cells and co-cultured both cells respectively (8 groups), wrapped in a pedicled muscle flap, placed as an ectopic culture on the abdominal wall of rabbits (n = 24), and harvested after two and four weeks. Analysis of the biochemical and mechanical properties demonstrated that the PCL scaffold with co-culture cells seeding displayed the optimal chondrogenesis with adequate rigidity to maintain the cylindrical shape and luminal patency. Histological analysis confirmed that cartilage formed in the co-culture groups contained a more homogeneous and higher extracellular matrix content. The luminal surfaces appeared to support adequate epithelialization due to the formation of vascularized capsular tissue. A prefabricated neo-trachea was transferred to the defect as a tracheal replacement and yielded satisfactory results. These encouraging results indicate that our co-culture approach may enable the development of a clinically applicable neo-trachea.
Keywords: Bone marrow stem cell; Cartilage; Co-culture; Poly(ε-caprolactone) (PCL); Poly-lactic-glycolic acid (PLGA); Trachea.
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