8-arm PEG based hydrogel as a tunable matrix scaffold for promoting articular cartilage repair
Refereed conference paper presented and published in conference proceedings


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AbstractArticular cartilage lesions associated with injury or degeneration are challenging clinical issues because of very limited capacity of self-repair of this tissue. Matrix-assisted autologous implantation (MACI) technique has been considered as a promising approach for promoting articular cartilage repair and served as a therapy for younger patients with articular cartilage defects. Hydrogels have been extensively investigated as scaffolds in MACI attributed to their excellent biocompatibility, high-water content, similarity to the extracellular matrix (ECM), and ability to match irregular defects. Moreover, the injectable hydrogels also have advantages of less or minimal invasive than that of the traditional surgical procedures. Among those synthesized hydrogels, poly (ethylene glycol) (PEG) has drawn significant attention in hydrogel forming precursors for its controllability, reproducibility, and biocompatibility. Generation of matrix scaffold with PEG to enhance the repair capacity of articular cartilage tissue remains a significant clinical demand. In this study, we generated a novel injectable 8 arm-PEG (8-PEG) hydrogel, which exhibited appropriate structural porosity, gelation manner, swelling and degradation behaviors, as well as excellent mechanical properties. We found that the chondrocytes could proliferate and maintained chondrogenic phenotypes in the 8-PEG hydrogel in vitro. The production of ECM components and chondrogenic marker proteins expression were evident in the engineered cartilage tissue in the subcutaneous transplantation model in the severe compromised immunodeficiency (SCID) mice. The reparative capacity of the articular cartilage defect was enhanced with the 8-PEG hydrogel in the mouse osteochondral defect model compared with the none-treatment controls. To realize the more efficient effects of small molecule drug delivery in articular cartilage defect repair, we generated the 8-PEG hydrogel with chemical conjugation of a prolyl hydroxylase inhibitor deferoxamine (8-PEG-DFO). The 8-PEG-DFO hydrogel showed advantages in promoting engineered cartilage tissue formation and inhibiting chondrocyte hypertrophy in the subcutaneous transplantation model and the osteochondral defect model in the SCID mice. Taken together, an injectable 8-PEG hydrogel system was constructed and confirmed to be conducive to engineered cartilage tissue formation. It also shed light on realizing synergetic effect of hydrogel scaffold to facilitate articular cartilage repair by modifying the multi-arm polymer precursors.
Acceptance Date18/11/2020
All Author(s) ListChuhui Hu Fengjie Zhang, Chi Wu Chao Wan
Name of ConferenceGuangzhou-Hong Kong Postgraduate Research Exchange and Symposium on Regenerative Medicine
Start Date of Conference18/11/2020
End Date of Conference18/11/2020
Place of ConferenceOnline
Country/Region of ConferenceHong Kong
Year2020
Month11
LanguagesEnglish-United Kingdom
KeywordsPEG, hydrogel, articular cartilage repair

Last updated on 2021-07-12 at 09:31