Chondrocyte-seeded tissue engineering scaffolds hold the promise of enhancing certain cartilage repair procedures. The objective of this study was to evaluate the effects of selected growth factors [fibroblast growth factor (FGF)-2 and insulin-like growth factor (IGF)-1] individually and in combination on adult canine articular chondrocyte-seeded type II collagen-glycosaminoglycan (GAG) scaffolds grown in serum-free (SF) medium.
Approximately 500,000 second passage chondrocytes were seeded into discs of the scaffold, 4mm diameterx2 mm thick. The constructs were grown in the following media: serum-containing medium; a basal SF medium; SF with 5 ng/ml FGF-2; SF with 25 ng/ml FGF-2; SF with 100 ng/ml IGF-1; and SF with 5 ng/ml FGF-2 plus 100 ng/ml IGF-1. The DNA and GAG contents of the scaffolds were determined after 1 day and 2 weeks and the protein and GAG synthesis rates determined at 2 weeks using radiolabels. Histology and type II collagen immunohistochemistry were also performed.
FGF-2 at 5 ng/ml was found to substantially increase the biosynthetic activity of the cells and the accumulation of GAG. The histology demonstrated chondrocytes uniformly distributed through a matrix that stained intensely for GAG and type II collagen after only 2 weeks. Of interest were the rapid degradation of the collagen scaffold, despite the fact that the scaffold was carbodiimide cross-linked, and the contraction of the constructs. There were less pronounced effects using the higher dose of FGF-2 and the combination with IGF-1.
Chondrocyte-seeded type II collagen scaffolds cultured in SF medium supplemented with 5 ng/ml FGF-2 undergo contraction, demonstrate an increase in construct incorporation of radiolabeled sulfate, and display qualitative signs of chondrogenesis.