ABSTRACT
Objectives: To reconstruct a critically sized segmental bony defect using chitosan/ bioactive glass scaffold seeded with osteogenically differentiated stem cells with the evaluation of the engineered bone tissue. Materials and methods: 18 adult male mongrel dogs were selected to be used in the present study. The experimental protocol was divided in to five stages; A. Teeth extraction. B. Bone marrow aspiration. C. Stem cells isolation and culturing. D. Scaffold preparation and seeding of BMSCs. E. Implantation of the engineered construct in the defect site. F. Evaluation of the newly formed osseous tissue. Results: Radiographic evaluation of the constructed tissue revealed the highest bone density (259.23 +/- 52.42 %) at week 16 by group I2. H& E stained engineered bone showed various stages of bone development where the newly formed bone was integrated with the host bone. Histomorphometric analysis revealed the increase in areas of mature newly formed bone by increasing time intervals. The highest mean bone area fraction value (47.72+/-1.94%) was recorded by group I2 at 16week time interval. Conclusion: This study suggests that chitosan/ bioglass tissue engineering scaffolds seeded with BMSCs could be a reliable treatment modality for reconstruction of critically-sized bone defects.
Keywords: Chitosan; Bioglass; Bone marrow stem cells; segmental defect