Efficacy of a hybrid system of hyaluronic acid and collagen loaded with prednisolone and TGF-β3 for cartilage regeneration in rats

Introduction: Tissue engineering helps to substitute or enabling the regeneration of damaged or diseased tissue by using a combination of biomaterials, bioactive molecules, and cells. Hyaluronic acid (HA) and collagen are two major constituents of the extracellular matrix of the cartilage tissue with quite interesting mechanical properties. Methods: The hybrid-scaffolds containing HA and collagen were loaded with transforming growth factor-beta 3 (TGF-beta 3), and prednisolone. They were applied on the scaffold in two dosage forms of the lyophilized implantable disk and thermosensitive gel. The most optimum formulation was adopted for the in-vivo study only after in-vitro characterizations. The knee cartilage damage was induced and the dosage forms were applied to them. Results: After four months, the radiographic images and pathologic samples revealed that all formulations had therapeutic effects compared with the control group. However, the best result was observed in samples treated with the implantable disk loaded with TGF-beta 3. Conclusion: It appears that this porous hybrid scaffold loaded with TGF-beta 3 could be a suitable select in cartilage regeneration in addition to a controlled-release system for drug delivery in osteoarthritis.