Objective: Bone marrow stromal cells (bMSCs) of rabbits transferred with mammalian hBMP-4 expression plasmid were used to construct tissue-engineered bone. Gene therapy combined with tissue-engineering technique was explored to further improve osteogenesis.
Methods: pEGFP-hBMP-4 plasmid was constructed by subcloning technique. bMSCs were then transferred with either pEGFP-hBMP-4, pEGFP plasmid by lipofectamine or left uninfected in vitro. The cells from the 3 groups were combined with natural non-organic bone (NNB) to construct tissue-engineered bones, which were subcutaneously implanted into nude mice (6 implants per group) for 4 weeks. Specimens were evaluated through histological and computerized new bone formation analysis.
Results: pEGFP-hBMP-4 plasmid was successfully constructed. bMSCs could attach and proliferate on the surface on NNB. In vivo experiment showed that new bone formation in pEGFP-hBMP-4 group was higher than those of the control groups.
Conclusions: Tissue-engineered bone using hBMP-4 gene modified bMSCs might be an ideal alternative for the repair of bone.