LAUSR

There is an increasing need for bone substitutes for reconstructive orthopedic surgery following removal of bone tumors. Despite the advances in bone regeneration, the use of autologous mesenchymal stem cells (MSC) presents a significant challenge, particularly for the treatment of large bone defects in cancer patients. This study aims at developing new chemokine-based technology to generate biodegradable scaffolds that bind pharmacologically active proteins for regeneration/repair of target injured tissues in patients. Primary MSC were cultured from the uninvolved bone marrow (BM) of cancer patients and further characterized for "stemness". Their ability to differentiate into an osteogenic lineage was studied in 2D cultures as well as on 3D macroporous PLGA scaffolds incorporated with biomacromolecules bFGF and homing factor chemokine stromal-cell derived factor-1 (SDF1). MSC from the uninvolved BM of cancer patients exhibited properties similar to that reported for MSC from BM of healthy individuals. Macroporous PLGA discs were prepared and characterized for pore size, architecture, functional groups, thermostability, and cytocompatibility by ESEM, FTIR, DSC, and CCK-8 dye proliferation assay, respectively. It was observed that the MSC+PLGA+bFGF+SDF1 construct cultured for 14 days supported significant cell growth, osteo-lineage differentiation with increased osteocalcin expression, alkaline phosphatase secretion, calcium mineralization, bone volume, and soluble IL6 compared to unseeded PLGA and PLGA+MSC, as analyzed by confocal microscopy, biochemistry, ESEM, microCT imaging, flow cytometry, and EDS. Thus, chemotactic biomacromolecule SDF1-guided tissue repair/regeneration ability of MSC from cancer patients opens up the avenues for development of "off-the-shelf" pharmacologically active construct for optimal repair of the target injured tissue in postsurgery cancer patients, bone defects, damaged bladder tissue, and radiation-induced skin/mucosal lesions.