[Preliminary study on polyvinyl alcohol/wild antheraea pernyi silk fibroin as nanofiber scaffolds for tissue engineered tendon].

OBJECTIVE:To investigate the cellular compatibility of polyvinyl alcohol (PVA)/wild antheraea pernyi silk fibroin (WSF), and to explore the feasibility for tendon tissue engineering scaffold in vitro. METHODS:The solutions of WSF (11%), PVA (11%), and PVA/WSF (11%) were prepared with 98% formic acid (mass fraction) at a mass ratio of 9:1. The electro spinning membranes of WSF, PVA, and PVA/WSF were prepared by electrostatic spinning apparatus. The morphologies of scaffolds were evaluated using scanning electronic microscope (SEM). The tendon cells were isolated from tail tendon of 3-day-old Sprague Dawley rats in vitro. The experiment was performed using the 3rd generation cells. The tendon cells (1 x 10(6)/mL) were cocultured with PVA and PVA/WSF electro spinning film, respectively, and MTT test was used to assess the cell adhesion rate 4, 12 hours after coculture. The tendon cells were cultured in PVA and PVA/WSF extraction medium of different concentration (1, 1/2, and 1/4), respectively; and the absorbance (A) values were detected at 1, 3, 5, and 7 days to evaluate the cytotoxicity. The composite of tendon cells and the PVA or PVA/WSF scaffold were observed by HE staining at 7 days and characterized by SEM at 1, 3, 5, and 7 days. RESULTS:The solution of WSF could not be used to electro spin; and the solution of PVA and PVA/WSF could be electrospun. After coculture of tendon and PVA or PVA/WSF electro spinning membranes, the cell adhesion rates were 26.9% +/- 0.4% and 87.0% +/- 1.0%, respectively for 4 hours, showing significant difference (t = 100.400, P = 0.000); the cell adhesion rates were 35.2% +/- 0.6% and 110.0% +/- 1.7%, respectively for 12 hours, showing significant difference (t = 42.500, P = 0.000). The cytotoxicity of PVA/WSF was less significantly than that of PVA (P < 0.05) and significant difference was observed between 1/2 PVA and 1/4 PVA (P < 0.05). HE staining and SEM images showed that the tendon cells could adhere to PVA and PVA/WSF scaffolds, but that the cells grew better in PVA/WSF scaffold than in PVA scaffold in vitro. CONCLUSION:PVA/WSF electro spinning membrane scaffold has good cell compatibility, and it is expected to be an ideal scaffold of tendon tissue engineering.