Self-fitting shape memory polymer foam inducing bone regeneration: A rabbit femoral defect study

Ruiqi Xie, Jinlian Hu, Oskar Hoffmann, Yuanchi Zhang, Frankie Ng, Tingwu Qin, Xia Guo

Research output: Journal article publicationJournal articleAcademic researchpeer-review

74 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

Although tissue engineering has been attracted greatly for healing of critical-sized bone defects, great efforts for improvement are still being made in scaffold design. In particular, bone regeneration would be enhanced if a scaffold precisely matches the contour of bone defects, especially if it could be implanted into the human body conveniently and safely. In this study, polyurethane/hydroxyapatite-based shape memory polymer (SMP) foam was fabricated as a scaffold substrate to facilitate bone regeneration. The minimally invasive delivery and the self-fitting behavior of the SMP foam were systematically evaluated to demonstrate its feasibility in the treatment of bone defects in vivo. Results showed that the SMP foam could be conveniently implanted into bone defects with a compact shape. Subsequently, it self-matched the boundary of bone defects upon shape-recovery activation in vivo. Micro-computed tomography determined that bone ingrowth initiated at the periphery of the SMP foam with a constant decrease towards the inside. Successful vascularization and bone remodeling were also demonstrated by histological analysis. Thus, our results indicate that the SMP foam demonstrated great potential for bone regeneration.
Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)936-945
Number of pages10
JournalBiochimica et Biophysica Acta - General Subjects
Volume1862
Issue number4
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 1 Apr 2018

Keywords

  • Bone regeneration
  • Self-fitting
  • Shape memory polymer foam
  • Tissue engineering

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Biophysics
  • Biochemistry
  • Molecular Biology

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