[Experiment study of auto-cartilage engineering].
OBJECTIVE
To engineer diversified shapes of neocartilage from auto-cartilage and provide a new method to reconstruct cartilage.


METHODS
Cartilage obtained from the ear of 5-week-old New Zealand rabbits was cut into pieces of 0.5 mm x 0.5 mm, which were seeded onto the three-dimensional polylactic acid foams. The cartilage-polymer construct was implanted into a subcutaneous pocket of the donor rabbit. Animals were sacrificed at 3rd, 6th month after implantation. The retrieved implants in each animal were used for gross measurement and histological analysis.


RESULTS
Gross examinations of the specimens at 6 months after implantation revealed that there was neocartilage formation; the maxim size was 8 mm x 8 mm. The cartilage showed no signs of resorption. Histological evaluation confirmed the generation of cartilage. The polymer substrate support cell proliferation. The extracellular matrix stained strongly positive for S-GAGs with Alcian blue staining.


CONCLUSIONS
Neocartilage can be created using free auto-cartilage transplantation on appropriate polymer templates.
Yang
G
G
Department of Plastic Surgery, General Hospital of Guangzhou Military Region, Guangzhou 510010, China.
Si
T
T
Chen
B
B
D000818:Animals; D002356:Cartilage / Q000166:cytology* / Q000254:growth & development; D002455:Cell Division; D019344:Lactic Acid; D011091:Polyesters; D011108:Polymers; D011817:Rabbits; D013234:Stem Cells / Q000502:physiology*
D011091:Polyesters; D011108:Polymers; D019344:Lactic Acid; C033616:poly(lactide)