The effect of the fibre orientation of electrospun scaffolds on the matrix production of rabbit annulus fibrosus-derived stem cells.

ABSTRACT: Annulus fibrosus (AF) tissue engineering has recently received increasing attention as a treatment for intervertebral disc (IVD) degeneration; however, such engineering remains challenging because of the remarkable complexity of AF tissue. In order to engineer a functional AF replacement, the fabrication of cell-scaffold constructs that mimic the cellular, biochemical and structural features of native AF tissue is critical. In this study, we fabricated aligned fibrous polyurethane scaffolds using an electrospinning technique and used them for culturing AF-derived stem/progenitor cells (AFSCs). Random fibrous scaffolds, also prepared via electrospinning, were used as a control. We compared the morphology, proliferation, gene expression and matrix production of AFSCs on aligned scaffolds and

SUBMITTER: Liu C 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4472148 | biostudies-literature | 2015

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature