Repair of Annulus Fibrosus Defects Using Decellularized Annulus Fibrosus Matrix/chitosan Hybrid Hydrogels

Overview

Journal J Orthop Surg Res

Publisher Biomed Central

Specialty Orthopedics

Date 2024 Sep 2

PMID 39223621

Authors

Chen Liu

Xin Ge

Yifeng Li

Affiliations

Soon will be listed here.

Abstract

Degenerative disc disease is the leading cause of lower back and leg pain, considerably impacting daily life and incurring substantial medical expenses for those affected. The development of annulus fibrosus tissue engineering offers hope for treating this condition. However, the current annulus fibrosus tissue engineering scaffolds fail to accurately mimic the natural biological environment of the annulus fibrosus, resulting in limited secretion of extracellular matrix produced by the seeded cells and poor biomechanical properties of the constructed biomimetic annulus fibrosus tissue. This inability to match the biomechanical performance of the natural annulus fibrosus hinders the successful treatment of annulus fibrosus defects. In this study, we fabricated decellularized annulus fibrosus matrix (DAFM)/chitosan hydrogel-1 (DAFM: Chitosan 6:2) and DAFM/chitosan hydrogel-2 (DAFM: Chitosan 4:4) by varying the ratio of DAFM to chitosan. Rat annulus fibrosus (AF)-derived stem cells were cultured on these hydrogel scaffolds, and the cell morphology, AF-related gene expression, and Interleukin-6 (IL-6) levels were investigated. Additionally, magnetic resonance imaging, Hematoxylin and eosin staining, and Safranine and Fast Green staining were performed to evaluate the repair effect of the DAFM/chitosan hydrogels in vivo. The gene expression results showed that the expression of Collagen type I (Col-I), Collagen type I (Col-II), and aggrecan by annulus fibrosus stem cells (AFSCs) cultured on the DAFM/chitosan-1 hydrogel was higher compared with the DAFM/chitosan-2 hydrogel. Conversely, the expression of metalloproteinase-9 (MMP-9) and IL-6 was lower on the DAFM/chitosan-1 hydrogel compared with the DAFM/chitosan-2 hydrogel. In vivo, both the DAFM/chitosan-1 and DAFM/chitosan-2 hydrogels could partially repair large defects of the annulus fibrosus in rat tail vertebrae. In conclusion, the DAFM/chitosan-1 hydrogel could be regarded as a candidate scaffold material for the repair of annulus fibrosus defects, offering the potential for improved treatment outcomes.

Citing Articles

Targeting skeletal interoception: a novel mechanistic insight into intervertebral disc degeneration and pain management.

Zhu H, Ren J, Wang X, Qin W, Xie Y J Orthop Surg Res. 2025; 20(1):159.

PMID: 39940003 PMC: 11823264. DOI: 10.1186/s13018-025-05577-7.

Functional Scaffolds for Bone Tissue Regeneration: A Comprehensive Review of Materials, Methods, and Future Directions.

Todd E, Mirsky N, Silva B, Shinde A, Arakelians A, Nayak V J Funct Biomater. 2024; 15(10).

PMID: 39452579 PMC: 11509029. DOI: 10.3390/jfb15100280.

References

Muthu S, Jeyaraman M, Chellamuthu G, Jeyaraman N, Jain R, Khanna M . Does the Intradiscal Injection of Platelet Rich Plasma Have Any Beneficial Role in the Management of Lumbar Disc Disease?. Global Spine J. 2021; 12(3):503-514. PMC: 9121148. DOI: 10.1177/2192568221998367. View

Pan M, Li Q, Li S, Mao H, Meng B, Zhou F . Percutaneous Endoscopic Lumbar Discectomy: Indications and Complications. Pain Physician. 2020; 23(1):49-56. View

Jing Z, Li L, Song J . Percutaneous transforaminal endoscopic discectomy versus microendoscopic discectomy for upper lumbar disc herniation: a retrospective comparative study. Am J Transl Res. 2021; 13(4):3111-3119. PMC: 8129260. View

Long R, Ferguson S, Benneker L, Sakai D, Li Z, Pandit A . Morphological and biomechanical effects of annulus fibrosus injury and repair in an ovine cervical model. JOR Spine. 2020; 3(1):e1074. PMC: 7084058. DOI: 10.1002/jsp2.1074. View

Avcu E, Bastan F, Guney M, Yildiran Avcu Y, Ur Rehman M, Boccaccini A . Biodegradable Polymer Matrix Composites Containing Graphene-Related Materials for Antibacterial Applications: A Critical Review. Acta Biomater. 2022; 151:1-44. DOI: 10.1016/j.actbio.2022.07.048. View

Zhou C, Zhang G, Panchal R, Ren X, Xiang H, Xuexiao M . Unique Complications of Percutaneous Endoscopic Lumbar Discectomy and Percutaneous Endoscopic Interlaminar Discectomy. Pain Physician. 2018; 21(2):E105-E112. View

Sairyo K, Chikawa T, Nagamachi A . State-of-the-art transforaminal percutaneous endoscopic lumbar surgery under local anesthesia: Discectomy, foraminoplasty, and ventral facetectomy. J Orthop Sci. 2017; 23(2):229-236. DOI: 10.1016/j.jos.2017.10.015. View

Kim J, Ham C, Kwon W . Current Knowledge and Future Therapeutic Prospects in Symptomatic Intervertebral Disc Degeneration. Yonsei Med J. 2022; 63(3):199-210. PMC: 8860939. DOI: 10.3349/ymj.2022.63.3.199. View

Peredo A, Gullbrand S, Smith H, Mauck R . Putting the Pieces in Place: Mobilizing Cellular Players to Improve Annulus Fibrosus Repair. Tissue Eng Part B Rev. 2020; 27(4):295-312. PMC: 10799291. DOI: 10.1089/ten.TEB.2020.0196. View

10.

Kumar D, Gihar S, Shrivash M, Kumar P, Kundu P . A review on the synthesis of graft copolymers of chitosan and their potential applications. Int J Biol Macromol. 2020; 163:2097-2112. DOI: 10.1016/j.ijbiomac.2020.09.060. View

11.

Loreto C, Musumeci G, Castorina A, Loreto C, Martinez G . Degenerative disc disease of herniated intervertebral discs is associated with extracellular matrix remodeling, vimentin-positive cells and cell death. Ann Anat. 2011; 193(2):156-62. DOI: 10.1016/j.aanat.2010.12.001. View

12.

Ching K, Andriotis O, Sengers B, Stolz M . Genipin crosslinked chitosan/PEO nanofibrous scaffolds exhibiting an improved microenvironment for the regeneration of articular cartilage. J Biomater Appl. 2021; 36(3):503-516. PMC: 8419291. DOI: 10.1177/08853282211002015. View

13.

Liu C, Jin Z, Ge X, Zhang Y, Xu H . Decellularized Annulus Fibrosus Matrix/Chitosan Hybrid Hydrogels with Basic Fibroblast Growth Factor for Annulus Fibrosus Tissue Engineering. Tissue Eng Part A. 2019; 25(23-24):1605-1613. PMC: 6919252. DOI: 10.1089/ten.TEA.2018.0297. View

14.

Xiao L, Ding M, Saadoon O, Vess E, Fernandez A, Zhao P . A novel culture platform for fast proliferation of human annulus fibrosus cells. Cell Tissue Res. 2016; 367(2):339-350. PMC: 5269443. DOI: 10.1007/s00441-016-2497-4. View

15.

Wei Q, Liu D, Chu G, Yu Q, Liu Z, Li J . TGF-β1-supplemented decellularized annulus fibrosus matrix hydrogels promote annulus fibrosus repair. Bioact Mater. 2022; 19:581-593. PMC: 9108517. DOI: 10.1016/j.bioactmat.2022.04.025. View

16.

Baig M, Hani Abdullah U, Muhammad A, Aziz A, Syed M, Darbar A . Use of Platelet-Rich Plasma in Treating Low Back Pain: A Review of the Current Literature. Asian Spine J. 2020; 15(1):117-126. PMC: 7904486. DOI: 10.31616/asj.2019.0161. View

17.

Akyuva Y, Kaplan N, Yilmaz I, Ozbek H, Sirin D, Karaaslan N . Delivering Growth Factors through a Polymeric Scaffold to Cell Cultures Containing both Nucleus Pulposus and Annulus Fibrosus. Turk Neurosurg. 2018; 29(2):180-193. DOI: 10.5137/1019-5149.JTN.22672-18.1. View

18.

Panebianco C, Rao S, Hom W, Meyers J, Lim T, Laudier D . Genipin-crosslinked fibrin seeded with oxidized alginate microbeads as a novel composite biomaterial strategy for intervertebral disc cell therapy. Biomaterials. 2022; 287:121641. PMC: 9758274. DOI: 10.1016/j.biomaterials.2022.121641. View

19.

Liu C, Li Y, Zhang Y, Xu H . The experimental study of regeneration of annulus fibrosus using decellularized annulus fibrosus matrix/poly(ether carbonate urethane)urea-blended fibrous scaffolds with varying elastic moduli. J Biomed Mater Res A. 2021; 110(5):991-1003. DOI: 10.1002/jbm.a.37347. View

20.

Tavakoli J, Diwan A, Tipper J . Advanced Strategies for the Regeneration of Lumbar Disc Annulus Fibrosus. Int J Mol Sci. 2020; 21(14). PMC: 7402314. DOI: 10.3390/ijms21144889. View