The Comparative Study between PLGA and Chitosan Scaffolds for Cartilage Tissue Engineering.

Lee, Yong Jik; Chung, Ho Yun; Shin, Dong Phil; Kim, Jong Yeop; Yang, Jung Duk; Lee, Dong Gul; Park, Jae Woo; Cho, Byung Chae; Baik, Bong Soo

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Original Article

Journal of the Korean Society of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgeons 2005;32(5):599-606.
Published online September 1, 2005.

The Comparative Study between PLGA and Chitosan Scaffolds for Cartilage Tissue Engineering.

Yong Jik Lee, Ho Yun Chung, Dong Phil Shin, Jong Yeop Kim, Jung Duk Yang, Dong Gul Lee, Jae Woo Park, Byung Chae Cho, Bong Soo Baik

¹Department of Plastic & Reconstructive Surgery, Kyungpook National University Hospital, Daegu, Korea. hy-chung @mail.knu.ac.kr
²Dr. Shin's Aesthetic Plastic Surgical Clinic, Daegu, Korea.
³Department of Plastic & Reconstructive Surgery, Ulsan Dongkang Hospital, Ulsan, Korea.

Abstract

Clinical application of the cartilage formed by tissue engineering is of no practical use due to the failure of long-term structural integrity maintenance. One of the important factors for integrity maintenance is the biomaterial for a scaffold. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the difference between polylactic-co-glycolic acids (PLGA) and chitosan as scaffolds. Human auricular chondrocytes were isolated, cultured, and seeded on the scaffolds, which were implanted in the back of nude mice. Eight animals were sacrificed at 4, 8, 12, 16, and 24 weeks after implantation respectively. In gross examination and histological findings, the volume of chondrocyte-PLGA complexes was decreased rapidly. The volume of chondrocyte-chitosan complexes was well maintained with a slow decrease rate. The expression of type II collagen protein detected by immunohistochemistry and western blots became weaker with time in the chondrocyte-PLGA complexes. However, the expression in the chondrocyte-chitosan complexes was strong for the whole period. Collagen type II gene expressions using RT-PCR showed a similar pattern. In conclusion, these results suggest that chitosan is a superior scaffold in cartilage tissue engineering in terms of structural integrity maintenance. It is expected that chitosan scaffold may become one of the most useful scaffolds for cartilage tissue engineering.

Keywords: PLGA; Chitosan; Scaffold; Cartilage tissue engineering

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