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Desktop-Stereolithography 3D Printing of a Decellularized Extracellular Matrix/Mesenchymal Stem Cell Exosome Bioink for Vaginal Reconstruction

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Tissue Engineering and Regenerative Medicine Aims and scope

Abstract

Background

3D-printing is widely used in regenerative medicine and is expected to achieve vaginal morphological restoration and true functional reconstruction. Mesenchymal stem cells-derived exosomes (MSCs-Exos) were applyed in the regeneration of various tissues. The current study aimed to explore the effctive of MSCs-Exos in vaginal reconstruction.

Methods

In this work, hydrogel was designed using decellularized extracellular matrix (dECM) and gelatin methacrylate (GelMA) and silk fibroin (SF). The biological scaffolds were constructed using desktop-stereolithography. The physicochemical properties of the hydrogels were evaluated; Some experiments have been conducted to evaluate exosomes’ effect of promotion vaginal reconstruction and to explore the mechanism in this process.

Results

It was observed that the sustained release property of exosomes in the hydrogel both in vitro and in vitro.The results revealed that 3D scaffold encapsulating exosomes expressed significant effects on the vascularization and musule regeneration of the regenerative vagina tissue. Also, MSCs-Exos strongly promoted vascularization in the vaginal reconstruction of rats, which may through the PI3K/AKT signaling pathway.

Conclusion

The use of exosome-hydrogel composites improved the epithelial regeneration of vaginal tissue, increased angiogenesis, and promoted smooth muscle tissue regeneration. 3D-printed, lumenal scaffold encapsulating exosomes might be used as a cell-free alternative treatment strategy for vaginal reconstruction.

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Acknowledgements

The authors would like to thank Dr. Yanbiao Song for his technical assistance. This work was supported by the Natural Precision Medicine Joint Fund Nurture Project of Hebei Province [H2021206463]; the Medical Science Research Project of Hebei Province [20240996]; the Medical Science Research Plan Project of Hebei Province [20210080]; and the Innovative Capacity Improvement Plan of Hebei Province [20577705D].

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Author notes

  1. Wenxin Shi and Jiahua Zheng have contributed equally to this work.

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, The Second Hospital of Hebei Medical University, 215 He** West Road, Shijiazhuang, 050000, Hebei, China

    Wenxin Shi, Jiahua Zheng, **gkun Zhang, Zhongkang Li, Qian Li, **anghua Huang & Yanfang Du

  2. Department of Reproductive Medicine, Longyan First Affiliated Hospital of Fujian Medical University, Longyan, Fujian, China

    **aoli Dong

  3. Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, The Third Hospital of Hebei Medical University, 139 Ziqiang Road, Shijiazhuang, 050000, Hebei, China

    Yanlai **ao

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  1. Wenxin Shi
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Contributions

Wenxin Shi, Jiahua Zheng and **anghua Huang designed the study; **kun Zhang; **aoli Dong and Zhongkang Li acquisited and analyzed the datas;Yanlai **ao Interpreted the datas. Wenxin Shi drafted the manuscript. **anghua Huang and Yanfang Du supervised the article. All authors edited and approved the final manuscript.

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Correspondence to **anghua Huang or Yanfang Du.

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Ethical statement

The animal studies were performed after receiving approval of the Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee (IACUC) in the Second Hospital of Hebei Medical University (Approval Letter No:2023-AE083).

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Shi, W., Zheng, J., Zhang, J. et al. Desktop-Stereolithography 3D Printing of a Decellularized Extracellular Matrix/Mesenchymal Stem Cell Exosome Bioink for Vaginal Reconstruction. Tissue Eng Regen Med (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s13770-024-00649-x

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