Abstract:

BACKGROUND: At present, the materials of cartilage framework are various, but not one kind of material can fully comply with requirements of cartilage repair.
OBJECTIVE: To observe the growth of cartilage cells in mixed chitosan-collagen scaffold.
METHODS: The porous chitosan-collagen scaffold was fabricated by the freeze-drying technique using 2% collagen and 3% chitosan. The chondrocytes at passage 2 were planted in chitosan-collagen scaffolds (experimental group) or cell panels (control group). The porosity, water absorption and internal structure of the scaffold were observed. The cell attachment capacity and proliferation of chondrocytes was valuated by MTT and hematoxylin-eosin staining. Expressions of type Ⅱ collagen and proteoglycan mRNA were valuated by RT-PCR.
RESULTS AND CONCLUSION: The water absorption of chitosan-collagen scaffold was (80.0±0.55)%, porosity was (88.5±1.5)%, and the pore size was 100-150 μm. The scaffold facilitated the penetration and attachment of chondrocytes. After two weeks, RT-PCR showed that collagen and proteoglycan mRNA were expressed in the experimental group, but only a little in the control group. These results showed that the chitosan-collagen scaffold (2% collagen and 3% chitosan) can provide an appropriate environment for the generation of chondrocytes and have a potential application in the cartilage tissue engineering scaffold field. It is one kind of good carrier for restoration and reconstruction of cartilage.