Bioreactors mediate the effectiveness of tissue engineering scaffolds.
We hypothesized that the mechanically active environment present in rotating bioreactors mediates the effectiveness of three-dimensional (3D) scaffolds for cartilage tissue engineering. Cartilaginous constructs were engineered by using bovine calf chondrocytes in conjunction with two scaffold materials (SM) (benzylated hyaluronan and polyglycolic acid); three scaffold structures (SS) (sponge, non-woven mesh, and composite woven/non-woven mesh); and two culture systems (CS) (a bioreactor system and petri dishes). Construct size, composition [cells, glycosaminoglycans (GAG), total collagen, and type-specific collagen mRNA expression and protein levels], and mechanical function (compressive modulus) were assessed, and individual and interactive effects of model system parameters (SM, SS, CS, SM*CS and SS*CS) were demonstrated. The CS affected cell seeding (higher yields of more spatially uniform cells were obtained in bioreactor-grown than dish-grown 3-day constructs) and subsequently affected chondrogenesis (higher cell numbers, wet weights, wet weight GAG fractions, and collagen type II levels were obtained in bioreactor-grown than dish-grown 1-month constructs). In bioreactors, mesh-based scaffolds yielded 1-month constructs with lower type I collagen levels and four-fold higher compressive moduli than corresponding sponge-based scaffolds. The data imply that interactions between bioreactors and 3D tissue engineering scaffolds can be utilized to improve the structure, function, and molecular properties of in vitro-generated cartilage.
Division of Health Sciences and Technology, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02139, USA.
Ming
M
Pei
Luis A
LA
Solchaga
Joachim
J
Seidel
Li
L
Zeng
Gordana
G
Vunjak-Novakovic
Arnold I
AI
Caplan
Lisa E
LE
Freed
D000818:Animals; D019149:Bioreactors; D002356:Cartilage / Q000166:cytology; D002417:Cattle; D002455:Cell Division / Q000187:drug effects; D019902:Chondrocytes / Q000166:cytology; D046508:Culture Techniques / Q000379:methods; D006820:Hyaluronic Acid / Q000031:analogs & derivatives* / Q000494:pharmacology; D011100:Polyglycolic Acid / Q000494:pharmacology; D013997:Time Factors; D023822:Tissue Engineering / Q000295:instrumentation / Q000379:methods*
C086358:hyaluronic acid benzyl ester; D011100:Polyglycolic Acid; D006820:Hyaluronic Acid