Implantable Bioresorbable Scaffold with Fucosylated Chondroitin Sulfate as a Promising Device for Delayed Stimulation of Hematopoiesis

The aim of this study was to evaluate the prospects of using natural fucosylated chondroitin sulfate (FCS) from the sea cucumber <i>Cucumaria japonica</i> as the active component of an implantable biodegradable scaffold to stimulate hematopoiesis in mice with cyclophosphamide (CPh)-induced myelosuppression. The scaffolds were based on bioresorbable Fe-Mn-C and Fe-Mn-Pd alloys after equal-channel angular pressing (ECAP). The efficiency of the developed constructs with FCS was compared with the activity of the same scaffolds loaded with recombinant human granulocyte colony stimulating factor, as well as solutions of these active compounds administered subcutaneously after the end of the cyclophosphamide (CPh) course. It was found that implantation of the Fe-Mn-C scaffold loaded with FCS most effectively stimulated hematopoiesis, providing a complex effect. This design of the developed constructs contributed to an increase in the concentration not only of leukocytes and neutrophils, but also platelets in the blood, promoted the proliferation of bone marrow cells, increasing the concentration of Ki-67(+) cells, and contributed to the restoration of the morphology of the animals' spleen.