Biomimetic triphasic silk fibroin scaffolds seeded with tendon-derived stem cells for tendon-bone junction regeneration

Biomater Sci. 2024 Feb 27;12(5):1239-1248. doi: 10.1039/d3bm00548h.

Abstract

The regeneration of tendon and bone junctions (TBJs), a fibrocartilage transition zone between tendons and bones, is a challenge due to the special triphasic structure. In our study, a silk fibroin (SF)-based triphasic scaffold consisting of aligned type I collagen (Col I), transforming growth factor β (TGF-β), and hydroxyapatite (HA) was fabricated to mimic the compositional gradient feature of the native tendon-bone architecture. Rat tendon-derived stem cells (rTDSCs) were loaded on the triphasic SF scaffold, and the high cell viability suggested that the scaffold presents good biocompatibility. Meanwhile, increased expressions of tenogenic-, chondrogenic-, and osteogenic-related genes in the TBJs were observed. The in vivo studies of the rTDSC-seeded scaffold in a rat TBJ rupture model showed tendon tissue regeneration with a clear transition zone within 8 weeks of implantation. These results indicated that the biomimetic triphasic SF scaffolds seeded with rTDSCs have great potential to be applied in TBJ regeneration.

MeSH terms

  • Animals
  • Biomimetics
  • Fibroins* / chemistry
  • Rats
  • Silk / chemistry
  • Stem Cells
  • Tendons
  • Tissue Engineering / methods
  • Tissue Scaffolds / chemistry

Substances

  • Fibroins
  • Silk