Development of decellularized meniscus extracellular matrix and gelatin/chitosan scaffolds for meniscus tissue engineering.

BACKGROUND: The meniscus tissue engineering has provided a great potential treatment for meniscal injuries. However, few scaffolds in meniscus tissue engineering have matched the mechanical properties of native meniscus.

OBJECTIVE: In this study,we developed a composite scaffold using decellularized meniscus extracellular matrix (DMECM) and gelatin/chitosan (G/C), to explore apreferable ratio to enhance the elastic modulus and cytotoxicity properties of scaffolds.

METHODS: Moreover, the microstructure, porosity, cytotoxicity, and strength of the composite scaffolds were also evaluated. The micro-architectures of the samples were evaluated using scanning electron microscope (SEM). Fourier Transform Infrared analysis (FTIR) (Brulcer Tensor 27, Ettlingen, Germany) was used to confirm the chemical structure with different type composite scaffolds. The compressive elastic modulus of all the scaffolds were measuredas by Universal tensile testing machine, DNS300 (Changchun testing machine research institute, China). Calcein-AM (green fluorescence) and Propidium Iodide (FUBAIKE, China) (red fluorescence) were used to stain live cells and dead cells respectively. Morphology and spatial distribution of cells within scaffolds were observed by confocal laser scanning microscopy FV 1000 (Nikon, Japan).

RESULTS: SEM showed that the composite scaffolds had suitable porous structure. CCK-8 and live/dead staining demonstrated that the composite scaffolds had no cytotoxicity and could promotebone marrow mesenchymal stem cells (BMSCs) proliferation. The FTIR results demonstrated the successful mixing of these two elements, and the addition of DMECM improved the elastic modulus and cytotoxicity of G/C composite scaffolds.

CONCLUSIONS: In summary, this study developed a composite scaffold using DMECM and G/C, and demonstrated it may be suitable for meniscal tissue engineering application.