Bone tissue formation on modified polybutylene succinate scaffolds with porcine dental germ stem cells

BONE TISSUE FORMATION ON MODIFIED POLYBUTYLENE SUCCINATE SCAFFOLDS WITH PORCINE DENTAL GERM STEM CELLS Designing and providing a scaffold are very important for the cells in Tissue Engineering. In this area, there are three important parameters that are cells, scaffolds, and chemical signals. These are also known as the basic building blocks of tissue engineering. These can lead to the repair or formation of tissue. Scaffolds have the suitable substrate for cell attachment, cell proliferation and differentiation function. They can also stimulate cellular response, possess mechanical strength and dimensional stability. Besides, scaffold should be biocompatible and biodegradable and have porous interconnected network to facilitate vascularization and growth of newly formed tissue. Surface modification is necesssary for modifying biomaterials to elicit surface properties by the combination of physics and chemistry working together. One of the suitable scaffolds for bone tissue engineering is poly(butylene succinate) (PBS) that is a family of biodegradable synthetic plastics with excellent biodegradability, non-toxic degradation products, thermoplastic processability and balanced mechanical properties. Dental germ stem cells are preferable cell source for the tissue regeneration. Dental germs contain mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) which can be easily isolated, expanded and cryo-preserved. These cells are able to differentiate into osteo-, adipo- and neuro-genic cells. In this study, Porcine Dental Germ Stem Cells (pDGSCs) seeded polybutylene succinate (PBS) scaffolds were used to investigate the effect of surface modification on these foams in tissue engineering applications. The surface of the PBS scaffolds was modified with either fibronectin or laminin. The osteogenic potentials of pDGSCs on these modified and unmodified foams were examined by using osteogenic differentiation medium to heal bone defects. For this study, MTS cell proliferation assay was used to learn about the cytotoxic effects of modified and unmodified surfaces. For the characterization of pDGSCs, flow cytometry analysis was carried out. Besides, alkaline phosphatase (ALP) test and von Kossa staining were applied to analyze osteogenic potentials of pDGSCs. Confocal microscopy and CM-Dil staining studies were carried out to support MTS, ALP and von Kossa tests. The results of these studies demonstrated that pDGSCs were differentiated into osteogenic cells on fibronectin modified PBS foams better than on unmodified and laminin modified PBS foams.