Feasibility Study of the Elaboration of a Biodegradable and Bioactive Ligament Made of Poly(ε-caprolactone)-pNaSS Grafted Fibers for the Reconstruction of Anterior Cruciate Ligament: In Vivo Experiment

Abstract

BackgroundThe anterior cruciate ligament rupture is a common injury which mainly affects young and active population. Faced to this problem, the development of synthetic structures for ligament reconstruction is increasing. The most recent researches focused on the development of biodegradable structures that could be functionalized to enhance host integration. This work describes the elaboration of different poly(ε-caprolactone) prototypes for the rat anterior cruciate ligament replacement in order to found the best design for further in vivo assays. MethodsAccording to the literature, it was decided to elaborate two different poly(ε-caprolactone) prototypes: a braided one and a free-fibers one. A chemical grafting of a bioactive polymer–poly(sodium styrene sulfonate) – was performed on both prototypes and mechanical and biological testing were assessed. Based on these results, one rat was implanted with the best prototype. ResultsThe mechanical and biological results demonstrated that the best prototype to implant was the poly(sodium styrene sulfonate)-grafted braided prototype. After one-month implantation, no inflammation was observable around the scar. The rat demonstrated good flexion and extension of the lower limb without any anterior drawer. The prototype was highly anchored to the bone. ESEM images of the explanted prototype showed the presence of cells and tissue ingrowth along and around the fibers. ConclusionThis work demonstrates the feasibility to implant a bioactive and biodegradable synthetic ligament in the rat model without any inflammation and with a good tissue anchoring at a short-term time. This will lead to an extensive in vivo assay.