Hyaluronic hydrogels developed by Carnegie Mellon University researchers may provide a suitable scaffolding to enable bone regeneration.
The hydrogels, created by Newell Washburn, Krzysztof Matyjaszewski and Jeffrey Hollinger, have proven to encourage the growth of preosteoblast cells, cells that aid the growth and development of bone. Doctoral student Sidi Bencherif will present this research, Sunday, Aug. 17 at the 236th national meeting of the American Chemical Society in Philadelphia.
Currently, physicians are able to treat patients with damaged bone tissue, like those who have bone fractures that fail to heal, using demineralized bone matrix, a biological material obtained from cadavers. Demineralized bone matrix is rich in growth factor proteins which signal bone cells in the area to multiply and form complex bone tissue, while other proteins in the matrix regulate the activity of the growth factors. Demineralized bone matrix is in limited supply, and because it comes from a human donor, there is a risk of transmitting viruses to the recipient.
"Tissue engineering is an exciting field. We're creating solutions to problems that can significantly impact people's quality of life," said Washburn, an assistant professor of chemistry and biomedical engineering at Carnegie Mellon. "These gels have great promise in not only regenerating bone, but serving as a gene therapy delivery system."