Human clinical experience with adipose precursor cells seeded on hyaluronic acid-based spongy scaffolds

Histioconductive approaches to soft-tissue defects use scaffolds seeded with lineage- and tissue-specific progenitors to generate tissue which should reside in equilibrium with adjacent tissue. Scaffolds guide histiogenesis by ensuring cell-cell and cell-matrix interactions. Hyaluronic acid-based (HA) preadipocyte-seeded scaffolds were evaluated for their adipo-conductive potential and efficacy in humans. Preadipocytes were isolated from lipoaspirate material and seeded on HA scaffolds. The cellular bio-hybrid (ADIPOGRAFT) and an acellular control scaffold (HYAFF11) were implanted subcutaneously. At specific time points (2, 8 and 16 weeks) explants were analyzed histopathologically with immunohistochemistry. No adverse tissue effects occurred. Volume loss and consistent degradation of the HYAFF11 scaffolds compared to the ADIPOGRAFT group indicated progressive tissue integration. No consistent histological differences between both groups were observed. By 8 weeks all void spaces within the scaffolds were filled with cells with pronounced matrix deposition in the ADIPOGRAFT bio-hybrids. Here we show that HA scaffolds were stable cell carriers and had the potential to generate volume-retaining tissue. However, no adipogenic differentiation was observed within the preadipocyte-seeded scaffolds.