ABSTRACT
Objective To Study if aortic smooth muscle cells(ASMC) can produce elastic fibers in three-dimensional culture imitating the dermis substitute. Methods Primary culture of ASMCs were obtained by explanting of thoracic aortae from one-week old SD rats. ?-actin immunocytochemistry was used to approve the smooth muscle cells. After subculture, ASMCs were mixed with gels composed of collagen, chitin and glucosaminoglycans, then, three-dimensional culture was carried out. After 1 week and 2 weeks, Gomori aldehyde fuchsin staining and elastin immunocytochemistry were applied to detect the elastic fibers in the ASMC-collagen gels. Results More than 98% of the cultured cells were approved as smooth muscle cells by ?-actin immunocytochemistry. After both 1 and 2 weeks of three-dimentional culture, elastic fibers were detected in the ASMC-collagen gels by both stainings.Conclusion ASMCs can synthesize elastin and produce elastic fiber in three-dimentional culture imitating the dermis substitute.
ABSTRACT
Objective To investigate if aortic smooth muscle cells (ASMCs) cultured three-dimentionally with collagen gel can still produce elastic fibers and the acceptance of hosts after transplantated in subcutaneous of rats. Methods AMSC-collagen gels that had been cultured for 2 weeks by three-dimentionally imitating the dermis substitute were transplanted to rats subscutaneous. After 4,7,10,14 and 28 days, the transplantations were examined via HE staining, Gomori aldehyde fuchsin staining, ?-actin immunohistochemistry and elastin immunohistochemistry. Results The amount of elastic fibers increased significantly in the week, whereas on the 28th day, no elastic fibers were detected.There was no remarkable leucocyte infiltration around the ASMC-collagen gel during 28 days.Conclusion Further studies are needed to explore the ASMC-collagen gels as a kind of elastic dermis substitute.