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Photothermal-Triggered Structural Change of Nanofiber Scaffold Integrating with Graded Mineralization to Promote Tendon–Bone Healing

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Abstract

Scaffolds functionalized with graded changes in both fiber alignment and mineral content are more appealing for tendon-bone healing. This study reports the healing of rotator cuff injury using a heterogeneous nanofiber scaffold, which is associated with a structural gradating from aligned to random and an increasing gradient of mineral content in the same orientation. The photothermal-triggered structural change of a nanofiber scaffold followed by graded mineralization is key to constructing such scaffolds. This type of scaffold was found to be biocompatible and provide beneficial contact guidance in the manipulation of tendon-derived stem cell morphologies in vitro. Specifically, tenogenic and osteogenic differentiation of tendon-derived stem cells were simultaneously achieved using the fabricated scaffold. In vivo investigation also showed the improved healing of rabbit rotator cuff injuries based on immunohistochemical analysis and biomechanical investigation that indicates the promising potential of a dual-gradient nanofiber scaffold in clinical tendon-bone healing.

Graphical abstract

Dual-gradient nanofiber scaffold with transitions in both surface structure and mineral content was designed and manufactured to replicate the native interface between tendon and bone to facilitate the tendon-bone healing in a rabbit rotator cuff injury model.

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Acknowledgements

This research was supported by National Natural Science Foundation of China (31872310, 82001970), Natural Science Foundation of Shandong Province (ZR2019MH097, ZR2021YQ17), Young Elite Scientists Sponsorship Program by CAST (No. YESS20200097), and startup funds from Qingdao University (T.W.).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Sports Medicine, Affiliated Hospital of Qingdao University, Qingdao, 266061, Shandong, China

    Chenghao Yu, Tianrui Wang, Yi Zhang, Hongyuan Jiang, Peng Zhao, Zhengyi Shan, Zewen Sun & Tengbo Yu

  2. Institute of Neuroregeneration and Neurorehabilitation, Qingdao Medical College, Qingdao University, Qingdao, 266071, Shandong, China

    Chenghao Yu, Na Liu & Tong Wu

  3. Shandong Key Laboratory of Textile Materials for Healthcare, Collaborative Innovation Center for Eco-Textiles of Shandong Province and the Ministry of Education, 308 Ningxia Road, Qingdao, 266071, Shandong, China

    Tong Wu

  4. State Key Lab for Modification of Chemical Fibers and Polymer Materials, College of Chemistry, Chemical Engineering and Biotechnology, Donghua University, Shanghai, 201620, China

    Xiumei Mo

  5. Department of Endocrinology, Jinan Central Hospital Affiliated To Shandong University, No. 105 Jiefang Road, Jinan, 250013, Shandong, China

    Hongcui Diao

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  1. Chenghao Yu
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  4. Na Liu
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Contributions

CY: methodology, formal analysis, data curation, software, writing-original draft. TW: methodology. HD: formal analysis, writing-original draft. NL: methodology, writing-review & editing. YZ: formal analysis. HJ: methodology, writing-original draft. PZ: methodology. ZS: methodology. ZS: methodology. TW: conceptualization, methodology, resources, supervision, funding acquisition, writing-review & editing. XM: conceptualization, resources. TY: project administration, resources, supervision, funding acquisition.

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Correspondence to Tong Wu or Tengbo Yu.

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Yu, C., Wang, T., Diao, H. et al. Photothermal-Triggered Structural Change of Nanofiber Scaffold Integrating with Graded Mineralization to Promote Tendon–Bone Healing. Adv. Fiber Mater. 4, 908–922 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s42765-022-00154-7

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