Transplantation of mucosal tissue model composed of rabbit oral mucosal cells

Since skin grafted into the oral cavity does not differentiate into mucosa, its original characteristics remain unchanged. This may cause discomfort to patients treated with such grafted skin, due to the skin's hair follicles and keratinization. This phenomenon is controlled by subepithelial connective tissues, and is thus referred to as the Epithelio-Mesenchymal Interaction. The grafting of mucosa itself would be preferable, but this procedure is severely limited due to the scarcity of suitable tissue. Accordingly, we have recently prepared artificial mucosa in vitro, using fibroblasts and epithelial cells derived from rabbit oral mucosa and collagen gel, and transplanted it into a donor animal. This paper is the first report of a method using artificial mucosa for the reconstruction of mucosal defects.