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  4. A Novel 3D-Printed/Porous Conduit with Tunable Properties to Enhance Nerve Regeneration Over the Limiting Gap Length
 
research article

A Novel 3D-Printed/Porous Conduit with Tunable Properties to Enhance Nerve Regeneration Over the Limiting Gap Length

Redolfi-Riva, Eugenio
•
Perez-Izquierdo, Miriam
•
Zinno, Ciro
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July 13, 2023
Advanced Materials Technologies

Engineered grafts constitute an alternative to autologous transplant for repairing severe peripheral nerve injuries. However, current clinically available solutions have substantial limitations and are not suited for the repair of long nerve defects. A novel design of nerve conduit is presented here, which consists of a chitosan porous matrix embedding a 3D-printed poly-& epsilon;-caprolactone mesh. These materials are selected due to their high biocompatibility, safe degradability, and ability to support the nerve regeneration process. The proposed design allows high control over geometrical features, pores morphology, compression resistance, and bending stiffness, yielding tunable and easy-to-manipulate grafts. The conduits are tested in chronic animal experiments, aiming to repair a 15-mm long gap in the sciatic nerve of rats, and the results are compared with an autograft. Electrophysiological and nociception tests performed monthly during a 4-month follow-up show that these conduits allow a good degree of muscle functional recovery. Histological analyses show abundant cellularization in the wall and in the lumen of the conduits and regenerated axons within all rats treated with these grafts. It is suggested that the proposed conduits have the potential to repair nerves over the limiting gap length and can be proposed as strategy to overcome the limitations of autograft.

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Type
research article
DOI
10.1002/admt.202300136
Web of Science ID

WOS:001027176700001

Author(s)
Redolfi-Riva, Eugenio
Perez-Izquierdo, Miriam
Zinno, Ciro
Contreras, Estefania
Rodriguez-Meana, Bruno
Iberite, Federica
Ricotti, Leonardo
Micera, Silvestro  
Navarro, Xavier
Date Issued

2023-07-13

Publisher

Wiley

Published in
Advanced Materials Technologies
Subjects

Materials Science, Multidisciplinary

•

Materials Science

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chitosan

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limiting gap length

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nerve conduits

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nerve injury

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nerve regeneration

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plc

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chitosan conduits

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guidance conduits

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repair

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scaffolds

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guides

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graft

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tube

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tubulization

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fabrication

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autografts

Editorial or Peer reviewed

REVIEWED

Written at

EPFL

EPFL units
TNE  
Available on Infoscience
July 31, 2023
Use this identifier to reference this record
https://infoscience.epfl.ch/handle/20.500.14299/199522
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