A two-layer skin construct consisting of a collagen hydrogel reinforced by a fibrin-coated polylactide nanofibrous membrane

International Journal of Nanomedicine
Marketa BacakovaLucie Bacakova

Abstract

Background: Repairs to deep skin wounds continue to be a difficult issue in clinical practice. A promising approach is to fabricate full-thickness skin substitutes with functions closely similar to those of the natural tissue. For many years, a three-dimensional (3D) collagen hydrogel has been considered to provide a physiological 3D environment for co-cultivation of skin fibroblasts and keratinocytes. This collagen hydrogel is frequently used for fabricating tissue-engineered skin analogues with fibroblasts embedded inside the hydrogel and keratinocytes cultivated on its surface. Despite its unique biological properties, the collagen hydrogel has insufficient stiffness, with a tendency to collapse under the traction forces generated by the embedded cells. Methods: The aim of our study was to develop a two-layer skin construct consisting of a collagen hydrogel reinforced by a nanofibrous poly-L-lactide (PLLA) membrane pre-seeded with fibroblasts. The attractiveness of the membrane for dermal fibroblasts was enhanced by coating it with a thin nanofibrous fibrin mesh. Results: The fibrin mesh promoted the adhesion, proliferation and migration of the fibroblasts upwards into the collagen hydrogel. Moreover, the fibroblasts spontan...Continue Reading

Methods Mentioned

BETA
scanning electron microscopy
confocal microscopy
Assay
ELISA

Software Mentioned

Matlab

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