Response of @entity1 engineered cartilage based on articular or nasal chondrocytes to XXXX and low @entity26 .

@entity1 @entity1356 @entity26 @entity64523 @entity50357
Previous studies showed that @entity1 nasal chondrocytes ( @entity50357 ) exhibit higher proliferation and chondrogenic capacity as compared to @entity1 articular chondrocytes (HAC). To consider @entity50357 as a relevant alternative cell source for the repair of articular cartilage defects it is necessary to test how these cells react when exposed to environmental factors typical of an injured joint. We thus aimed this study at investigating the responses of @entity50357 and HAC to exposure to @entity1356 and low @entity26 . For this purpose HAC and @entity50357 harvested from the same donors (N=5) were expanded in vitro and then cultured in pellets or collagen-based scaffolds at standard (19%) or low @entity26 (5%) conditions. Resulting tissues were analyzed after a short (3 days) exposure to @entity1356 , mimicking the initially inflammatory implantation site, or following a recovery time (1 or 2 weeks for pellets and scaffolds, respectively). After @entity1356 treatment, constructs generated by both HAC and @entity50357 displayed a transient loss of GAG (up to 21.8% and 36.8%, respectively) and, consistently, an increased production of @entity64523 . Collagen type II and the cryptic fragment of aggrecan (DIPEN), both evaluated immunohistochemically, displayed a trend consistent with GAG and MMPs production. @entity50357 -based constructs exhibited a more efficient recovery upon @entity1356 withdrawal, resulting in a higher accumulation of GAG (up to 2.6-fold) compared to the corresponding HAC-based tissues. On the other hand, HAC displayed a positive response to low @entity26 culture, while @entity50357 were only slightly affected by @entity26 percentage. Collectively, under the conditions tested mimicking the postsurgery articular environment, @entity50357 retained a tissue-forming capacity, similar or even better than HAC. These results represent a step forward in validating @entity50357 as a cell source for cartilage tissue engineering strategies.
