Test Tube Joint

A fragment of the mandibular bone was grown in the laboratoryCopper news
Columbia University researchers obtained an anatomically correct bone fragment from stem cells, which is part of the temporomandibular joint.

The bone tissues obtained in this way can be used for the reconstruction of bones deformed as a result of hereditary and oncological diseases, injuries and infectious processes.

A fragment of the maxillary bone was obtained from bone marrow stem cells that were seeded onto a skeleton that copied the shape of the corresponding bone of a particular patient. Magnetic resonance imaging data were used to determine the shape of the frame.

The reproduction and differentiation of stem cells took place in a special bioreactor, which provided a dosed supply of nutrients and proteins-growth factors to the cells, in quantities necessary for the formation of bone tissue. Five weeks later, the researchers obtained a fragment of tissue that matched the size, shape and structure of the condylar process of the mandibular bone.

According to the lead author of the study, Dr. Gordana Vunjak-Novakovich, in the future, a similar technology can be used to obtain other skull bones, in particular, those with a complex shape of the bones of the facial skeleton.

However, the fragment of the maxillary bone obtained by the researchers lacks blood vessels, as well as cartilage tissue lining the articular surface. In the future, scientists intend to refine their methodology in order to grow combined bone fragments in the laboratory, including various types of tissues.

The report on the study is published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

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12.10.2009