Project description:Tendon fascicles were analysed directly after isolation from the tail of freshly euthanized mice and after of after ex vivo culture for 6 days. Fascicles were cultured in either serum containing medium (10%) or in serum-free medium at 21% oxygen and 37 degrees celsius.
Project description:This microarray study compared the gene expression profile of rat tail tendon tissue in three different developmental stages: embryonic day 21, postnatal 3 weeks and postnatal 6 weeks.<br><br><br><br>Key words: rat tail tendon, tissue development, embryonic and postnatal
Project description:Tendon fascicles were extracted from tails of freshly euthanized mice and cultured for 6 days ex vivo in serum containing medium (10%) at either 3% oxygen and 29 degrees celsius or 21% oxygen and 37 degrees celsius.
Project description:Tendon is a hypocellular tissue that contains functional cable-like units of type I collagen responsible for the transmission of force from muscle to bone. In the setting of injury or disease, patients can develop chronic tendinopathies that are characterized by pain, loss of function and persistent inflammatory changes that are often difficult to treat. Platelet-rich plasma (PRP) has shown promise in the treatment of chronic tendinopathy, but little is known about the mechanisms by which PRP can improve tendon healing. PRP contains many different growth factors and cytokines, and since these proteins can both activate and inhibit various signaling pathways it has been challenging to determine precisely which signaling pathways and cellular responses are most important. Using state-of-the-art bioinformatics tools and genome wide-expression profiling, the purpose of this study was to determine the signaling pathways activated within cultured tendon fibroblasts in response to PRP treatment. Tendon fibroblasts were isolated from rat tail tendons and embedded in 3D type I collagen gels. Cells were treated with PRP or PPP for 24 hours, and total RNA was extracted for hybridization on Affymetrix arrays.
Project description:Tendons and ligaments are important biological structures in both humans and animals. They are part of dense connective tissue and are crucial to the functioning of the musculoskeletal system. However, they are commonly damaged due to age-related wear and tear, trauma or sports related incidents, which can lead to severe immobility for the individual and can lead to injury of other tissues and development of degenerative joint disease such as osteoarthritis. Tissue engineering can offer great potential in the treatment of tendon and ligament injury by seeking a biological replacement with fully regenerated autologenous tissue. This approach commonly involves an artificial ECM (scaffold) on which cell can proliferate and differentiate with subsequent new tissue generation. Fibrin is a natural scaffold with no expected toxic degradation or inflammatory reaction and can be used as an autologous scaffold for fibroblast from connective tissue to create a three dimensional structure. The purpose of this study was to compare the proteomic differences between native tendon, ligament and 3D tissue engineered tendon and ligament fibrin constructs.
Project description:We have compared the gene expression profile of rat Achilles tendon-derived stem cells in post-natal tendon development. Rat tendon stem/progenitor cells (TSPCs) were isolated at different stages of post-natal development: TSPCs-1d, TSPCs-7d and TSPCs-56d. TSPCs at different post-natal development stages (1d, 7d and 56d) were isolated, cultured and used for microarray analyses at passage 2. All TSPCs in this study were of isolated from more than one individual. Total RNA was extracted and fragmented biotin-tagged cRNA was hybridized to Rat Genome 230 2.0 Array.
Project description:Background: Tendon is a major component of musculoskeletal system connecting the muscles to the bone. Tendon injuries are very common orthopedics problems leading to impeded motion. Up to now, there still lacks effective treatments for tendon diseases. Methods: Tendon stem/progenitor cells (TSPCs) were isolated from the patellar tendons of SD rats. The expression levels of genes were evaluated by quantitative RT-PCR. Immunohistochemistry staining was performed to confirm the presence of tendon markers in tendon tissues. Bioinformatics analysis of data acquired by RNA-seq was used to find out the differentially expressed genes. Rat patellar tendon injury model was used to evaluate the effect of U0126 on tendon injury healing. Biomechanical testing was applied to evaluate the mechanical properties of newly formed tendon tissues. Results: In this study, we have shown that ERK inhibitor U0126 rather PD98059 could effectively increase the expression of tendon-related genes and promote the tenogenesis of TSPCs in vitro. To explore the underlying mechanisms, RNA sequencing was performed to identify the molecular difference between U0126-treated and control TSPCs. The result showed that GDF6 was significantly increased by U0126, which is an important factor of the TGFβ superfamily regulating tendon development and tenogenesis. In addition, NBM (nonwoven-based gelatin/polycaprolactone membrane) which mimics the native microenvironment of the tendon tissue was used as an acellular scaffold to carry U0126. The results demonstrated that when NBM was used in combination with U0126, tendon healing was significantly promoted with better histological staining outcomes and mechanical properties. Conclusion: Taken together, we have found U0126 promoted tenogenesis in TSPCs through activating GDF6, and NBM loaded with U0126 significantly promoted tendon defect healing, which provides a new treatment for tendon injury.