Muscle fragments on a scaffold in XXXX : a potential regenerative strategy in urogynecology.

@entity35 @entity13214 @entity12389 @entity3577
INTRODUCTION AND HYPOTHESIS: The use of permanent synthetic meshes to improve the outcome of @entity3577 ( @entity3577 ) repair causes frequent and serious complications. The use of the synthetic, biodegradable scaffold @entity12389 ( @entity12389 ) seeded with autologous muscle fiber fragments (MFF), as an adjunct to native tissue @entity3577 repair, is a potential new alternative. METHODS: A @entity35 abdominal wall model of native repair was used with six animals in each of three groups: native repair, native repair + @entity12389 , and native repair + @entity12389 + MFF. MFF were labeled with @entity13214 -fluorescence dye. After 8  weeks labeled cells were identified in tissue samples and histopathological and immunohistochemical analyses of connective tissue organization and desmin reactivity of muscle cells were performed. Fresh tissue samples were subjected to uniaxial biomechanical testing. Statistical analyses were performed using one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA). RESULTS: @entity12389 was fully degraded after 8  weeks. Desmin-immunopositive (6/6) and @entity13214 -positive cells (6/6) were found only after native repair + @entity12389 + MFF, indicating survival, proliferation, and integration of cells originating from the MFF. This group also showed significantly increased stiffness in the high stiffness zone compared with native repair + @entity12389 (p   =   0.032) and borderline significantly higher stiffness compared to native repair (p   =   0.054). CONCLUSIONS: In this pilot study, @entity12389 scaffolds seeded with autologous MFF affected some histological and biomechanical properties of native tissue repair in an abdominal wall defect model in @entity35 . The method thus appears to be a simple tissue engineering concept with potential relevance for native tissue repair of @entity3577 .
