title: Dorsal root ganglion-derived Schwann cells combined with poly(lactic-co-glycolic acid)/chitosan conduits for the repair of sciatic nerve defects in rats.
abstract: Schwann cells, nerve regeneration promoters in peripheral nerve tissue engineering, can be used to repair both the peripheral and central nervous systems. However, isolation and purification of Schwann cells are complicated by contamination with fibroblasts. Current reported measures are mainly limited by either high cost or complicated procedures with low cell yields or purity. In this study, we collected dorsal root ganglia from neonatal rats from which we obtained highly purified Schwann cells using serum-free melanocyte culture medium. The purity of Schwann cells (> 95%) using our method was higher than that using standard medium containing fetal bovine serum. The obtained Schwann cells were implanted into poly(lactic-co-glycolic acid)/chitosan conduits to repair 10-mm sciatic nerve defects in rats. Results showed that axonal diameter and area were significantly increased and motor functions were obviously improved in the rat sciatic nerve tissue. Experimental findings suggest that serum-free melanocyte culture medium is conducive to purify Schwann cells and poly(lactic-co-glycolic acid)/chitosan nerve conduits combined with Schwann cells contribute to restore sciatic nerve defects.
authors.affiliation: Department of Anesthesiology, Heji Hospital Affiliated to Changzhi Medical College, Changzhi, Shanxi Province, China.
authors.forename: Li
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Zhao
authors.affiliation: Department of Orthopedics, First Affiliated Hospital of Dalian Medical University, Dalian, Liaoning Province, China.
authors.forename: Wei
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Qu
authors.affiliation: Department of Orthopedics, First Affiliated Hospital of Dalian Medical University, Dalian, Liaoning Province, China.
authors.forename: Yuxuan
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Wu
authors.affiliation: Department of Orthopedics, First Affiliated Hospital of Dalian Medical University, Dalian, Liaoning Province, China.
authors.forename: Hao
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Ma
authors.affiliation: Department of Orthopedics, First Affiliated Hospital of Dalian Medical University, Dalian, Liaoning Province, China.
authors.forename: Huajun
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Jiang
keywords: NSFC grants; Schwann cells; chitosan; dorsal root ganglia; fibroblasts; melanocyte medium; nerve regeneration; neural regeneration; poly(lactic-co-glycolic acid); sciatic nerve defect