Injectable hydrogel with nucleus pulposus-matched viscoelastic property prevents intervertebral disc degeneration

作者：Haoruo Jia, Xiao Lin, Dong Wang, Jingwei Wang, Qiliang Shang, Xin He, Kang Wu, Boyan Zhao, Pandi Peng, Han Wang, Di Wang, Pan Li, Liu Yang, Zhuojing Luo, Lei Yang · 发表于：Journal of Orthopaedic Translation · 年份：2022 · DOI：10.1016/j.jot.2022.03.006 · 被引用次数：66 · 研究领域：Spine and Intervertebral Disc Pathology、Cervical and Thoracic Myelopathy、Tendon Structure and Treatment

Background/Objective: Intervertebral disc (IVD) degeneration (IVDD) that greatly affected by regional biomechanical environment is a major cause of low back pain. Injectable hydrogels have been commonly studied for treatment of IVDD due to their capability of mimicking extracellular matrix structure to support cellular behavior and clinical prospects in minimally invasive treatment. However, most hydrogels suffer from complicated chemistry, potential uncertainty and toxicity from in-situ gelation, and mismatch with IVD mechanical environment that limit their therapeutic effects or clinical translation in IVDD or intervertebral disc defect repair. For IVD lesion repair, the study aims to develop a novel hydrogel with shear-thinning enabled injectability, high bio-safety, and mechanical properties adaptable to the IVD environment, using a simple chemistry and method. And therapeutic efficacy of the novel hydrogel in the treatment of IVDD or intervertebral disc defect will be revealed. Methods: A glycerol cross-linked PVA gel (GPG) was synthesized based on multiple H-bonds formation between glycerol molecules and PVA chains. The rheological and mechanical properties were tested. The swelling ratio was measured. The micro-architecture was observed through scanning and transmission electron microscopes. Nucleus pulposus (NP) cells were cultured in GPG-coated plates or silicone chambers treated under hydrostatic or dynamic loading in vitro, and examined for proliferation, vitality,...