5 However, without a functioning annulus fibrosus (AF) to confine the nucleus pulposus (NP) and maintain intradisc pressure upon loading, any strategy for IVD regeneration is likely to fail. 3, 4 Tissue engineering has evolved into a promising approach for IVD regeneration. 1, 2 Current clinical treatments for IVD degeneration, including spinal fusion and disc arthroplasty, can alleviate the pain but do not restore the biological and mechanical functions of IVDs. Low back pain (LBP), a condition that affects approximately 80% of the global population and is generally the result of intervertebral disc (IVD) degeneration. Together, these findings indicate that aligned fibrous scaffolds may provide a favourable microenvironment for the differentiation of AFSCs into cells similar to outer AF cells, which predominantly produce collagen-I matrix. The gene expression and protein production of collagen-II did not appear to differ between the two groups. However, compared to cells on random scaffolds, the AFSCs on aligned scaffolds were more elongated and better aligned, and they exhibited higher gene expression and matrix production of collagen-I and aggrecan. There was no apparent difference in the attachment or proliferation of cells cultured on aligned scaffolds and random scaffolds. We compared the morphology, proliferation, gene expression and matrix production of AFSCs on aligned scaffolds and random scaffolds. Random fibrous scaffolds, also prepared via electrospinning, were used as a control. In this study, we fabricated aligned fibrous polyurethane scaffolds using an electrospinning technique and used them for culturing AF-derived stem/progenitor cells (AFSCs).
In order to engineer a functional AF replacement, the fabrication of cell-scaffold constructs that mimic the cellular, biochemical and structural features of native AF tissue is critical. Annulus fibrosus (AF) tissue engineering has recently received increasing attention as a treatment for intervertebral disc (IVD) degeneration however, such engineering remains challenging because of the remarkable complexity of AF tissue.
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