Resorbable muscle-tendon junction scaffold with tunable porosity and mechanical properties

Event Abstract Back to Event Resorbable muscle-tendon junction scaffold with tunable porosity and mechanical properties Ting He1, Xiaoqi Tang1, Jiyang Chen1, Denethia Green2, Young Min Ju2, Sang Jin Lee2 and Martin W. King1, 3 1 North Carolina State University, College of Textiles, United States 2 Wake Forest Institute of Regenerative Medicine, United States 3 Donghua University, College of Textiles, China Introduction: The current major challenge in complex tissue engineering (CTE) is to create a scaffold which not only mimics the three dimensional (3D) architecture of natural tissue[1] but in addition provides an integrated structural gradient that will serve as a junction between two dissimilar types of tissue[2]. In addition to the structure, the mechanical properties of the gradient region of the complex scaffold are critical for the successful translation of tensile forces, such as muscle-tendon junction (MTJ)[3]. Materials: Previously, we have harnessed the latest warp knitting technologies to design and fabricate a three dimensional (3D) multi-phase non-degradable spacer fabric that can support muscle and tendon cell proliferation (Figure 1). Recently we have applied resorbable polylactic acid (PLA) yarns to develop triple component structures that have a customized degradation rate, porosity, and mechanical properties at each region to mimic normal MTJ. These properties are tunable by manipulating the fabrication parameters. Figure 1: Simulated images, design concept and optical microscopic images of the MTJ spacer fabric scaffolds. Methods and Results: The software ProCad WarpKnit 3D was used to model, evaluate and modify the structures before knitting (Figure 1). 140 Denier/96 filament PLA yarn (Figure 2) was warp knitted into a spacer fabric with three contiguous regions using the optimal fabrication conditions developed by non-degradable prototypes. The degradation rate of the PLA yarn before and after knitting has been tested. The overall porosity, thickness, fabric density, compression and recovery properties have been tested using standard testing methods. The ultimate tensile properties measured include the tensile strength, tensile strain and initial Young’s modulus between 10% - 30% strain. Type I collagen has been applied to the scaffold fabrics to improve the hydrophobicity of the surface. Murine skeletal muscle cells (C2C12) have been cultured for 7 days on the PLA scaffold, and Alamar Blue cytoviability test has demonstrated that the scaffolds are biocompatibility. Figure 2: Scanning photomicrographs of PLA yarns used to knit the PLA scaffolds. The space between the filaments creates micro-pores for cell migration. Murine skeletal muscle cells and dermal fibroblasts were cultured simultaneously on the scaffold in a dynamic stretching bioreactor[4] (Figure 3). The cell viability and phenotype were examined by qPCR and immunohistochemistry[3],[4]. Figure 3: The PLA multi-phase scaffold is co-cultured with murine skeletal muscle cells (C2C12) and dermal fibroblasts (3T3) simultaneously in a cyclic stretching bioreactor[4] for up to two weeks. Conclusions and Future Work: A PLA knitted structures with a contiguous porosity gradient have been successfully developed and show appropriate structural characteristics, advanced mechanical properties and biocompatibility. Future work will involve qPCR and immunohistochemistry tests on all three regions of the engineered muscle-tendon junction interface. Brian Davis, Knitting Lab Manager, North Carolina State University; Eva Johannes, Director of Cellular and Molecular Imaging Facility, North Carolina State UniversityReferences:[1] He T. A study of three dimensional warp knits for novel applications as tissue engineering scaffolds. 2011.[2] Lu HH. Engineering tissue-to-tissue interfaces and the formation of complex tissues. Winter Issue of The Bridge on Frontiers of Engineering. 2012;42(4):40-47.[3] Ladd MR, Lee SJ, et al. Co-electrospun dual scaffolding for muscle-tendon junction tissue engineering. Biomaterials. 2011:32(6):1549-1559.[4] Moon DG, Christ G, Stitzel JD, Atala A, Yoo JJ. Cyclic mechanical preconditioning improves engineered muscle contraction. Tissue Engineering Part A. 2008;14(4):473-482. Keywords: Tissue Engineering, 3D scaffold, Biodegradable material, biomimetic culture Conference: 10th World Biomaterials Congress, Montréal, Canada, 17 May - 22 May, 2016. Presentation Type: New Frontier Oral Topic: Three-dimensional fabrication Citation: He T, Tang X, Chen J, Green D, Ju Y, Lee S and King MW (2016). Resorbable muscle-tendon junction scaffold with tunable porosity and mechanical properties. Front. Bioeng. Biotechnol. Conference Abstract: 10th World Biomaterials Congress. doi: 10.3389/conf.FBIOE.2016.01.00551 Copyright: The abstracts in this collection have not been subject to any Frontiers peer review or checks, and are not endorsed by Frontiers. They are made available through the Frontiers publishing platform as a service to conference organizers and presenters. The copyright in the individual abstracts is owned by the author of each abstract or his/her employer unless otherwise stated. Each abstract, as well as the collection of abstracts, are published under a Creative Commons CC-BY 4.0 (attribution) licence (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/) and may thus be reproduced, translated, adapted and be the subject of derivative works provided the authors and Frontiers are attributed. For Frontiers’ terms and conditions please see https://www.frontiersin.org/legal/terms-and-conditions. Received: 27 Mar 2016; Published Online: 30 Mar 2016. Login Required This action requires you to be registered with Frontiers and logged in. To register or login click here. Abstract Info Abstract The Authors in Frontiers Ting He Xiaoqi Tang Jiyang Chen Denethia Green Young Min Ju Sang Jin Lee Martin W King Google Ting He Xiaoqi Tang Jiyang Chen Denethia Green Young Min Ju Sang Jin Lee Martin W King Google Scholar Ting He Xiaoqi Tang Jiyang Chen Denethia Green Young Min Ju Sang Jin Lee Martin W King PubMed Ting He Xiaoqi Tang Jiyang Chen Denethia Green Young Min Ju Sang Jin Lee Martin W King Related Article in Frontiers Google Scholar PubMed Abstract Close Back to top Javascript is disabled. Please enable Javascript in your browser settings in order to see all the content on this page.