Interactions between monocytes, mesenchymal stem cells, and implants evaluated using flow cytometry and gene...

Area of Science:

• Biomaterials Science
• Cell Biology
• Tissue Engineering

Background:

• Monocytes and mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) are crucial for early implant healing.
• Understanding their interactions on different implant surfaces is vital.
• Previous research has not fully elucidated their co-existence dynamics.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the interactions between monocytes and MSCs on different titanium implant surfaces.
• To determine how co-culturing affects cell adhesion and gene expression.
• To compare the influence of co-culture versus implant surface properties.

Main Methods:

• In vitro system with monocultures and direct co-cultures of monocytes and MSCs.
• Utilized screw-shaped machined and oxidized titanium implants.
• Employed scanning electron microscopy, ELISA, flow cytometry, cell sorting, and qPCR.

Main Results:

• Co-culture resulted in equal monocyte and MSC adhesion on both implant types after 24 hours.
• Monocultures showed higher monocyte adhesion than MSC adhesion on oxidized implants.
• Co-culture upregulated key genes (IL-1β, CXCR4, BMP-2, SDF-1, ITGB1) in monocytes and MSCs, particularly in MSCs.

Conclusions:

• In early in vitro healing, co-culture interactions between monocytes and MSCs significantly influenced outcomes more than implant surface characteristics.
• The presence of both cell types alters adhesion and gene expression compared to monocultures.
• Gene expression of growth and recruitment factors was primarily enhanced in implant-adherent MSCs during co-culture.