[Study on the osteogenesis ability of co-culturing bone marrow stromal cells (BMSCs) and small intestinal submucosa]

Using co-culturing of bone marrow stromal cells (BMSCs) and small intestinal submucosa (SIS), to evaluate the cellular compatibility and the osteogenesis ability as well as the feasibility of SIS to serve as a scaffold in tissue engineering.

Bone marrow was aspirated from the healthy adult goat and culture-expanded in vitro by the method of total marrow. The third passage cells were transplanted into SIS after being induced to differentiate into osteoblasts for 4 days and then seeded into SIS for 3 to 10 days. BMSCs alone were cultured at the same condition to act as controls. The cellular morphology and function (attachment, proliferation and differentiation) and the ectopia osteogenesis in vivo were assessed separately by means of phase contrast microscope, SEM and MTT, ALP activity, histology detection. The difference between the two groups were analyzed by Student's t test statistically.

The BMSCs could adhere to SIS and proliferate and grow on the surface of SIS normally. The cellular activity and function were not affected by SIS, no statistical difference was found between the two groups (P>0.05). The BMSCs/SIS compounds had good abilities of ectopia osteogenesis in vivo, and with time going on new bone formation increased. There was no bone formation in the control group. The endochondral bone formatin was the main pattern of osteogenesis.

As a natural, absorbable, acellular scaffold, SIS is biocompatible and can be used as a tissue engineering scaffold. And for a membrane feature, there is the possibility to construct tissue engineered bone membrane with SIS.