title: Mesenchymal Stem Cells Increase Neo-Angiogenesis and Albumin Production in a Liver Tissue-Engineered Engraftment.
abstract: The construction of a three-dimensional (3D) liver tissue is limited by many factors; one of them is the lack of vascularization inside the tissue-engineered construct. An engineered liver pocket-scaffold able to increase neo-angiogenesis in vivo could be a solution to overcome these limitations. In this work, a hyaluronan (HA)-based scaffold enriched with human mesenchymal stem cells (hMSCs) and rat hepatocytes was pre-conditioned in a bioreactor system, then implanted into the liver of rats. Angiogenesis and hepatocyte metabolic functions were monitored. The formation of a de novo vascular network within the HA-based scaffold, as well as an improvement in albumin production by the implanted hepatocytes, were detected. The presence of hMSCs in the HA-scaffold increased the concentration of growth factors promoting angiogenesis inside the graft. This event ensured a high blood vessel density, coupled with a support to metabolic functions of hepatocytes. All together, these results highlight the important role played by stem cells in liver tissue-engineered engraftment.
authors.affiliation: Department of General Surgery and Odontoiatrics, Liver Transplant Unit, University Hospital of Verona, P.le Aristide Stefani 1, Verona 37126, Italy. amedeo.carraro@ospedaleuniverona.it.
authors.forename: Amedeo
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Carraro
authors.affiliation: Nanomedicine Lab, Institute of Inflammation and Repair, Faculty of Medical & Human Sciences, University of Manchester, Manchester M13 9PT, UK. maurizio.buggio@manchester.ac.uk.
authors.forename: Maurizio
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Buggio
authors.affiliation: Department of Biomedical Sciences, University of Padova, Viale Giuseppe Colombo, 3, Padova 35131, Italy. chiara.gardin@unipd.it.
authors.forename: Chiara
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Gardin
authors.affiliation: Department of General Surgery and Odontoiatrics, Liver Transplant Unit, University Hospital of Verona, P.le Aristide Stefani 1, Verona 37126, Italy. umberto.tedeschi@ospedaleuniverona.it.
authors.forename: Umberto
authors.initials: U
authors.lastname: Tedeschi
authors.affiliation: Department of Biomedical Sciences, University of Padova, Viale Giuseppe Colombo, 3, Padova 35131, Italy. letizia.ferroni@unipd.it.
authors.forename: Letizia
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Ferroni
authors.affiliation: Department of Biomedical Sciences, University of Padova, Viale Giuseppe Colombo, 3, Padova 35131, Italy. barbara.zavan@unipd.it.
authors.forename: Padova-Barbara
authors.initials: PB
authors.lastname: Zavan
mesh_terms: D000418:Albumins / Q000378:metabolism*; D000818:Animals; D002454:Cell Differentiation; D049109:Cell Proliferation; D002478:Cells, Cultured; D022781:Hepatocytes / Q000166:cytology / Q000378:metabolism / Q000637:transplantation*; D006801:Humans; D006820:Hyaluronic Acid / Q000378:metabolism; D008099:Liver / Q000098:blood supply* / Q000378:metabolism; D016031:Liver Transplantation; D045164:Mesenchymal Stem Cell Transplantation; D059630:Mesenchymal Stem Cells / Q000166:cytology* / Q000378:metabolism; D051381:Rats; D023822:Tissue Engineering / Q000379:methods*; D054457:Tissue Scaffolds
chemical_list: D000418:Albumins; D006820:Hyaluronic Acid
keywords: angiogenesis; engineered liver tissue; hepatocyte; hyaluronan-based scaffold; mesenchymal stem cell