Repair of Partial Thickness Articular Hyaline Cartilage Injuries with Multipotent Mesenchymal Stromal Bone Marrow Cells Transplantation in Rabbits

Abstract

Possibility of hyaline cartilage integrity restoration using multipotent mesenchymal stromal cells (MMSC) was studied on the rabbit model of partial thickness articular hyaline cartilage defect without subchondral plate damage. Size of defect made up 0.5 cm in diameter and 1.5 mm deep. Autologous bone marrow was harvested from the resected upper flaring portion of the ilium, single cell suspension was prepared and cultured in matrasses. Grown MMSC were centrifuged and the sediment was transferred into the cartilage defect. The cells were covered with either vicryl or gelatin sponge, or vicryl mesh. Histologic examination was performed in 4 months. It was shown that the most active regeneration of hyaline cartilage tissue, that substituted the largest part of a defect, was noted when MMSC were covered with vicryl mesh. One of the advantages of vicryl mesh use was that it neither protruded above the cartilaginous plate nor compressed the cells, and slowly resolved.