Facial-nerve regeneration ability of a hybrid artificial nerve conduit containing uncultured adipose-derived stromal vascular fraction: An experimental study.
OBJECTIVE
This study investigated the potential of uncultured-stromal-vascular-fraction (SVF) cells in promoting facial nerve regeneration in a rat model.


METHODS
A 7-mm nerve defect was created in the buccal branch of facial nerve in five groups of Lewis rats (total n = 30, n = 6 per group). A silicone tube, infused with syngeneic uncultured-SVF was implanted into the facial nerve defect. Groups 1-3 received 1 × 103, 1 × 105, and 1 × 107cells, and regenerated nerves were examined at 13 weeks after the surgery. The findings were compared to the autograft and collagen-alone groups with facial palsy score (FPS), the number of myelinated fibers, fiber diameter, axon diameter, myelin thickness, and g ratio.


RESULTS
There was no significant difference in FPS between the autograft and 1 × 105-cell groups at 13 weeks after surgery, and FPS values of these two groups were significantly higher than those of the other three groups (P < 0.01). Axon diameter significantly increased in the 1 × 105-cell group compared with the 1 × 103- (P < 0.05) and 1 × 107-cell groups (P < 0.01). Myelin thickness was found to be the highest in the autograft group, followed by the 1 × 105-, 1 × 103-, 1 × 107-cell, and negative control groups, and there were significant differences among all groups (P < 0.01).


CONCLUSIONS
The infusion of uncultured-SVF into the artificial nerve conduit promoted optimal nerve regeneration that was significantly better than nerve conduit alone. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Microsurgery 37:808-818, 2017.
Tissue Engineering and Wound Healing Laboratory, Division of Plastic Surgery, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA.
Hajime
H
Matsumine
Department of Pathology, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA.
Kazuyuki
K
Numakura
Tissue Engineering and Wound Healing Laboratory, Division of Plastic Surgery, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA.
Mihail
M
Climov
Department of Plastic, Reconstructive and Aesthetic Surgery, Tokyo Metropolitan Police Hospital, Nakano-Ku, Tokyo, Japan.
Yorikatsu
Y
Watanabe
Tissue Engineering and Wound Healing Laboratory, Division of Plastic Surgery, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA.
Giorgio
G
Giatsidis
Tissue Engineering and Wound Healing Laboratory, Division of Plastic Surgery, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA.
Dennis P
DP
Orgill
D017667:Adipocytes / Q000637:transplantation*; D000704:Analysis of Variance; D000818:Animals; D004195:Disease Models, Animal; D020220:Facial Nerve Injuries / Q000601:surgery*; D005434:Flow Cytometry / Q000379:methods; D008297:Male; D008855:Microscopy, Electron, Scanning / Q000379:methods; D009416:Nerve Regeneration / Q000502:physiology*; D011897:Random Allocation; D051381:Rats; D011917:Rats, Inbred Lew; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity; D017154:Stromal Cells / Q000637:transplantation*