title: PVA-chitosan composite hydrogel versus alginate beads as a potential mesenchymal stem cell carrier for the treatment of focal cartilage defects.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To investigate whether mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) seeded in novel polyvinyl alcohol (PVA)-chitosan composite hydrogel can provide comparable or even further improve cartilage repair outcomes as compared to previously established alginate-transplanted models.
  
  
  METHODS
  Medial femoral condyle defect was created in both knees of twenty-four mature New Zealand white rabbits, and the animals were divided into four groups containing six animals each. After 3 weeks, the right knees were transplanted with PVA-chitosan-MSC, PVA-chitosan scaffold alone, alginate-MSC construct or alginate alone. The left knee was kept as untreated control. Animals were killed at the end of 6 months after transplantation, and the cartilage repair was assessed through Brittberg morphological score, histological grading by O'Driscoll score and quantitative glycosaminoglycan analysis.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Morphological and histological analyses showed significant (p < 0.05) tissue repair when treated with PVA-chitosan-MSC or alginate MSC as compared to the scaffold only and untreated control. In addition, safranin O staining and the glycosaminoglycan (GAG) content were significantly higher (p < 0.05) in MSC treatment groups than in scaffold-only or untreated control group. No significant difference was observed between the PVA-chitosan-MSC- and alginate-MSC-treated groups.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  PVA-chitosan hydrogel seeded with mesenchymal stem cells provides comparable treatment outcomes to that of previously established alginate-MSC construct implantation. This study supports the potential use of PVA-chitosan hydrogel seeded with MSCs for clinical use in cartilage repair such as traumatic injuries.
authors.affiliation: Tissue Engineering Group (TEG), National Orthopaedic Centre of Excellence in Research and Learning (NOCERAL), Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, Faculty of Medicine, University of Malaya, 50603, Lembah Pantai, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
authors.forename: Havva
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Dashtdar
authors.affiliation: Tissue Engineering Group (TEG), National Orthopaedic Centre of Excellence in Research and Learning (NOCERAL), Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, Faculty of Medicine, University of Malaya, 50603, Lembah Pantai, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
authors.forename: Malliga Raman
authors.initials: MR
authors.lastname: Murali
authors.affiliation: Tissue Engineering Group (TEG), National Orthopaedic Centre of Excellence in Research and Learning (NOCERAL), Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, Faculty of Medicine, University of Malaya, 50603, Lembah Pantai, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
authors.forename: Azlina Amir
authors.initials: AA
authors.lastname: Abbas
authors.affiliation: Tissue Engineering Group (TEG), National Orthopaedic Centre of Excellence in Research and Learning (NOCERAL), Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, Faculty of Medicine, University of Malaya, 50603, Lembah Pantai, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
authors.forename: Abdulrazzaq Mahmod
authors.initials: AM
authors.lastname: Suhaeb
authors.affiliation: School of Medicine and Health Sciences, Monash University, Sunway Campus, Selangor, Malaysia.
authors.forename: Lakshmi
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Selvaratnam
authors.affiliation: Tissue Engineering Group (TEG), National Orthopaedic Centre of Excellence in Research and Learning (NOCERAL), Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, Faculty of Medicine, University of Malaya, 50603, Lembah Pantai, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
authors.forename: Liang Xin
authors.initials: LX
authors.lastname: Tay
authors.affiliation: Tissue Engineering Group (TEG), National Orthopaedic Centre of Excellence in Research and Learning (NOCERAL), Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, Faculty of Medicine, University of Malaya, 50603, Lembah Pantai, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. tkzrea@um.edu.my.
authors.forename: Tunku
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Kamarul
mesh_terms: D000464:Alginates / Q000494:pharmacology*; D000818:Animals; D001672:Biocompatible Materials / Q000494:pharmacology; D002358:Cartilage, Articular / Q000293:injuries*; D048271:Chitosan / Q000494:pharmacology*; D004195:Disease Models, Animal; D004337:Drug Carriers; D020723:Glucuronic Acid / Q000494:pharmacology; D006603:Hexuronic Acids / Q000494:pharmacology; D020100:Hydrogels; D007718:Knee Injuries / Q000473:pathology / Q000601:surgery*; D045164:Mesenchymal Stem Cell Transplantation / Q000379:methods*; D059630:Mesenchymal Stem Cells / Q000166:cytology*; D011142:Polyvinyl Alcohol / Q000494:pharmacology*; D011817:Rabbits
chemical_list: D000464:Alginates; D001672:Biocompatible Materials; D004337:Drug Carriers; D006603:Hexuronic Acids; D020100:Hydrogels; C062364:polyvinyl alcohol hydrogel; D020723:Glucuronic Acid; D011142:Polyvinyl Alcohol; D048271:Chitosan