Polylactic Acid/Polyvinylpyrrolidone Scaffolds With Adipose Tissue-Derived Mesenchymal Stem Cells Enhance Nerve Regeneration in Rats

The aim of this study was to investigate the treatment effect of an artificial nerve graft produced with polylactic acid (PLA) and polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP) by electrospinning method, in combination with rat allogeneic adipose tissue-derived mesenchymal stem cells (rAT-MSCs), on axonal regeneration in a rat sciatic nerve injury. A 10 mm long gap in the right sciatic nerve was created in rats which were divided into three groups and the gap was repaired with autologous nerve graft (autograft group), PLA/PVP conduit alone (PLA/PVP group), and PLA/PVP conduit with rAT-MSCs inside (PLA/PVP with rAT-MSC group). At the end of the eighth week, the results were evaluated functionally, electrophysiologically, and histologically. In functional evaluation, sciatic functional index (SFI) was used and all groups showed improvement over time. The results were seen in the autograft and PLA/PVP with rAT-MSC groups, with no statistically significant difference between them. In electrophysiological evaluation, action potential was seen in all three groups, with the best results seen in the PLA/PVP with rAT-MSC group with statistical significance. Histological evaluation showed axonal regeneration in all three groups. These results show that PLA/PVP conduit contributes to regeneration even when used alone, and increases regeneration when used together with rAT-MSCs.