Directing Chondrogenesis of Stem Cells with SpecificBlends of Cellulose and Silk.
- Resource Type
- Article
- Authors
- Singh, Nandita; Rahatekar, Sameer S.; Koziol, Krzysztof K. K.; Ng, TH. Sky; Patil, Avinash J.; Mann, Stephen; Hollander, Anthony P.; Kafienah, Wael
- Source
- Biomacromolecules. May2013, Vol. 14 Issue 5, p1287-1298. 12p.
- Subject
- *CHONDROGENESIS
*STEM cells
*CELLULOSE
*BIOMATERIALS
*CELL differentiation
*AGGRECAN
- Language
- ISSN
- 1525-7797
Biomaterialsthat can stimulate stem cell differentiation withoutgrowth factor supplementation provide potent and cost-effective scaffoldsfor regenerative medicine. We hypothesize that a scaffold preparedfrom cellulose and silk blends can direct stem cell chondrogenic fate.We systematically prepared cellulose blends with silk at differentcompositions using an environmentally benign processing method basedon ionic liquids as a common solvent. We tested the effect of blendcompositions on the physical properties of the materials as well ason their ability to support mesenchymal stem cell (MSC) growth andchondrogenic differentiation. The stiffness and tensile strength ofcellulose was significantly reduced by blending with silk. The characterizedmaterials were tested using MSCs derived from four different patients.Growing MSCs on a specific blend combination of cellulose and silkin a 75:25 ratio significantly upregulated the chondrogenic markergenes SOX9, aggrecan, and type II collagen in the absence of specificgrowth factors. This chondrogenic effect was neither found with neatcellulose nor the cellulose/silk 50:50 blend composition. No adipogenicor osteogenic differentiation was detected on the blends, suggestingthat the cellulose/silk 75:25 blend induced specific stem cell differentiationinto the chondrogenic lineage without addition of the soluble growthfactor TGF-β. The cellulose/silk blend we identified can beused both for in vitro tissue engineering and as an implantable devicefor stimulating endogenous stem cells to initiate cartilage repair. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]