15502-m-pleumeekers

Decellularization of human ear cartilage To investigate the potential clinical implementation of a decellularized scaffold with desirable size and shape, human ear cartilage ( h EC) was decellularized and characterized. On gross examination, the size and shape of the whole human ear was preserved after decellularization. (Figure 4A) The DNA content significantly reduced by 99.93% ( p =0.002) after decellularization compared to untreated h EC. Staining for H&E revealed the removal of most nuclear material, with minimal disruption of the ECM structure. (Figure 4B) sGAG and elastin contents were significantly reduced in the decellularized h EC scaffolds by 75.3% ( p =0.002) and 48.8% ( p =0.010), respectively. No statistically significant reduction was seen in the total collagen content ( p =0.180) after decellularization and histological staining of the decellularized h EC scaffolds confirmed the biochemical analysis. (Figure 4C) The Eeq of the h EC scaffolds was 2.51±1.26 MPa after decellularization and high magnification SEM of the decellularized h EC scaffolds showed a dense collagen matrix intertwined with thick elastic fibers. (Figure 4D) Figure 4. Human ear cartilage decellularization. (A) The size and shape of a whole human ear is preserved after decellularization. (B) DNA was statistically significantly reduced after decellularization and a reduction in cell remnants is seen on histology (H&E stain). (C) sGAG, collagen and elastin contents of untreated and decellularized human ear cartilage. Histological stains confirm the findings. Data shown as mean ± SD for 1 donor in 6-fold. (D) High magnification scanning electron microscopy (SEM) of decellularized ear cartilage shows thick elastic fibers deeply embedded in a complex collagen network ( n =1). C = Collagen ; E = Elastin ; * = cross-section of transected elastic fibers. 141 DECELLULARIZED CARTILAGE: AN ECM-DERIVED SCAFFOLD 7