Research Of Bone Formation With Osteoblasts Seeded In Coralline Hydroxylapatite

The reconstruction of lost parts of the maxillofacial skeleton is generally carried out with bone grafts and substitutes. To obviate the need for harvesting of grafts and to avoid the failings for using biomaterials alone, a search for bone production via tissue engineering, a new emerging field in biomedicine, has begun. In bone tissue engineering research, some kinds of ideal scaffold, providing three-dimension space for cells growing and tissue formation, have to be investigated. Coralline hydroxyapatite (CHA), formed by conversion of coral exoskeleton, possesses the scaffold properties of tissue engineering bone with its biocompatibility, osteoconduction and porous structure. To test the effectiveness of the new techniques of tissue-engineered bone, the study explore the utilization of CHA (interpore-500) scaffold for holding osteoblasts and creating new bone tissue in nude mice and New Zealand rabbits model. Methods: 1, Bone marrow cells obtained from New Zealand rabbits, were cultured and differentiated into osteoblasts in medium (DMEM) supplemented with 10% fetal bovine serum, ascorbic acid, beta-glycerophosphate, and dexamethasone. Osteoblasts were seeded on CHA discs. Then, osteoblasts/CHA composites and CHA alone (control) were implanted subcutaneously in the back of nude mice. 2. CHA with osteoblasts,that were differentiated from marrow cells of adult New Zealand rabbits, were autotransplanted within dorsal muscle of rabbits. Meanwhile, samples of CHA alone were implanted as the negative control group. The specimens were retrieved at 4 and 8 weeks. The bone formation was assessed by morphologic means (light microscopy and scanning electron microscopy examination). Results: At both times, formation of new bone were observed in the osteoblasts/CHA composites groups of both nude mice and New Zealand rabbits model. In CHA alone groups, the histologic features of all of control specimens demonstrated no new bone formation. Conclusions: 1. Osteogenesis could be observed in CHA seeded with osteoblasts. Therefore, osteoblasts/CHA composite presented a promising prospect for clinical practice. 2. CHA possesses good biocompatibility, osteoconduction and porous structure, can be used as scaffold material for constructing of tissue engineering bone.