Injectable tissue-engineered cartilage using commercially available fibrin glue.

OBJECTIVES/HYPOTHESIS To achieve injectable tissue-engineered cartilage using a commercially available fibrin sealant, and to determine the most suitable fibrin glue concentration, cartilage source, and cultured chondrocyte concentration. STUDY DESIGN Animal research. METHODS A total of 28 immunocompetent New Zealand white rabbits were divided into four groups. The cultured chondrocytes from different anatomical sources carried in fibrin glue with and without aprotinin in different concentrations of fibrinogen and thrombin (Tisseell), were injected into forehead and interocular regions of the rabbits. The new tissue formation was harvested at 8 weeks and analyzed through gross and histological analysis. RESULTS The new tissue formations were found in round, elliptical, and flat forms. The mean value of Tisseell and cell suspension was 0.8 cc in all of the rabbits' injection regions, but the mean volume of the samples in which immature cartilage matrix and mature cartilage was 0.1 cc. In the 20 of the 55 injection regions of rabbits (36, 36%), mature and/or immature cartilage formation were observed. We observed inflammatory reactions, abscess formation, and foreign body reactions around the new cartilage tissue of tissue-engineered cartilage. The comparison of results using different cartilage sources, chondrocyte concentrations, or different fibrin glue concentrations did not show any significant difference. CONCLUSIONS We observed that changing the concentrations of ingredients of commercially available fibrin glue, the source of the cartilage, or the cultured chondrocyte concentration did not have significant effect on neocartilage formation.