Synthesis of articular cartilage-like tissue in vitro.

Defects in mature articular cartilage do not heal without residues, and therefore they remain a challenging problem in orthopaedic surgery. Modern tissue culture techniques facilitate the synthesis of cartilage-like tissue. A requirement of retaining the phenotypic characteristics of chondrocytes in vitro is the use of three-dimensional culture techniques. Articular chondrocytes of adult rabbits were isolated and cultured on different transplantable media for several weeks. A resorbable fleece, a non-absorbable net and lyophilized dura were used. Viability was tested by immunohistochemical techniques. Deposition of extracellular matrix could be observed by electron microscopy. The phenotypical and morphological appearance of cultured chondrocytes was preserved on the resorbable polymer fleece and the lyophilized dura. Cells cultured on the non-absorbable net had a more fibroblastic appearance. The resorbable fleece is apparently most suitable in terms of viability of the cultured chondrocytes and biocompatibility. The cultured three-dimensional artificial cartilage constructs reveal a future possibility for autologous cartilage transplantation into mature cartilage defects.