Regeneration of Bone Defects in a Rabbit Femoral Osteonecrosis Model Using 3D-Printed Poly (Epsilon-Caprolactone)/Nanoparticulate Willemite Composite Scaffolds.

Latifeh Karimzadeh Bardeei,Jochen Salber,Ehsan Seyedjafari,Mohammad Nabiuni,Ghamartaj Hossein,Mohammad Hosein Majles Ara

doi:10.3390/ijms221910332

Abstract

Steroid-associated osteonecrosis (SAON) is a chronic disease that leads to the destruction and collapse of bone near the joint that is subjected to weight bearing, ultimately resulting in a loss of hip and knee function. Zn2+ ions, as an essential trace element, have functional roles in improving the immunophysiological cellular environment, accelerating bone regeneration, and inhibiting biofilm formation. In this study, we reconstruct SAON lesions with a three-dimensional (3D)-a printed composite made of poly (epsilon-caprolactone) (PCL) and nanoparticulate Willemite (npW). Rabbit bone marrow stem cells were used to evaluate the cytocompatibility and osteogenic differentiation capability of the PCL/npW composite scaffolds. The 2-month bone regeneration was assessed by a Micro-computed tomography (micro-CT) scan and the expression of bone regeneration proteins by Western blot. Compared with the neat PCL group, PCL/npW scaffolds exhibited significantly increased cytocompatibility and osteogenic activity. This finding reveals a new concept for the design of a 3D-printed PCL/npW composite-based bone substitute for the early treatment of osteonecrosis defects.

Highlights

IntroductionThe knee is the second most common site of Steroid-associated osteonecrosis (SAON) and is characterized by a loss of bone blood circulation, expansion of the bone necrotic area, and subchondral bone collapse [1]
Regeneration of osteonecrotic bone defects using a tissue engineering approach is Regeneration of osteonecrotic bone defects using a tissue engineering approach is seen as a potential alternative to the traditional use of bone grafts, as they are available seen as a potential alternative to the traditional use of bone grafts, as they are available in in an unlimited supply and there is no fear of disease transmission, additional donor site an unlimited supply and there is no fear of disease transmission, additional donor site morbidity, immune rejection, or pathogen transfer
PCL/nanoparticulate Willemite (npW) as a bone repair biomaterial would be a better scaffold with a good degradability, biocompatibility, and osteogenic differentiation capability with a high potential for applications in bone diseases and tissue regeneration

Summary

Introduction

The knee is the second most common site of SAON and is characterized by a loss of bone blood circulation, expansion of the bone necrotic area, and subchondral bone collapse [1]. Different treatment modalities (high tibial osteotomy, bone grafting, and core decompression) were used with different limitations, such as invasiveness, comorbidity of the autologous cancellous bone harvest site, a second surgery to remove osteosynthesis material, necrosis of autologous grafts, or lack of biomechanical stability of the alloplastic biomaterial used to fill the defect [4]. Despite the success of autologous bone grafts in reconstructing and healing bone defects, the limited bone resources in grafts and the disadvantages of the above alternative treatment strategies motivate the design and fabrication of new biologically active biomaterials for bone regeneration [5,10]

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Conclusion