Anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) is difficult to heal after injury due to the dynamic fluid environment of joint. Previously, we have achieved satisfactory regeneration of subcutaneous tendon/ligament with knitted silk-collagen sponge scaffold due to its specific "internal-space-preservation" property. This study aims to investigate the long-term effects of knitted silk-collagen sponge scaffold on ACL regeneration and osteoarthritis prevention. The knitted silk-collagen sponge scaffold was fabricated and implanted into a rabbit ACL injury model. The knitted silk-collagen sponge scaffold was found to enhance migration and adhesion of spindle-shaped cells into the scaffold at 2 months post-surgery. After 6 months, ACL treated with the knitted silk-collagen sponge scaffold exhibited increased expression of ligament genes and better microstructural morphology. After 18 months, the knitted silk-collagen sponge scaffold-treated group had more mature ligament structure and direct ligament-to-bone healing. Implanted knitted silk-collagen sponge scaffolds degraded much more slowly compared to subcutaneous implantation. Furthermore, the knitted silk-collagen sponge scaffold effectively protected joint surface cartilage and preserved joint space for up to 18 months post-surgery. These findings thus demonstrated that the knitted silk-collagen sponge scaffold can regenerate functional ACL and prevent osteoarthritis in the long-term, suggesting its clinical use as a functional bioscaffold for ACL reconstruction.
Keywords: Anterior cruciate ligament; Knitted silk–collagen sponge scaffold; Long-term effects; Osteoarthritis prevention; Regeneration.
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