Tissue engineering of rat bladder using marrow-derived mesenchymal stem cells and bladder acellular matrix

PLoS One. 2014 Dec 1;9(12):e111966. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0111966. eCollection 2014.

Abstract

Bladder replacement or augmentation is required in congenital malformations or following trauma or cancer. The current surgical solution involves enterocystoplasty but is associated with high complication rates. Strategies for bladder tissue engineering are thus actively sought to address this unmet clinical need. Because of the poor efficacy of synthetic polymers, the use of bladder acellular matrix (BAM) has been proposed. Indeed when cellular components are removed from xenogenic or allogeneic bladders, the extracellular matrix scaffold thus obtained can be used alone or in combination with stem cells. In this study, we propose the use of BAM seeded with marrow-derived mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) for bladder tissue engineering. We optimized a protocol for decellularization of bladder tissue from different species including rat, rabbit and swine. We demonstrate the use of non-ionic detergents followed by nuclease digestion results in efficient decellularization while preserving the extracellular matrix. When MSCs were seeded on acellular matrix scaffold, they remained viable and proliferative while adopting a cellular phenotype consistent with their microenvironment. Upon transplantation in rats after partial cystectomy, MSC-seeded BAM proved superior to unseeded BAM with animals recovering nearly 100% normal bladder capacity for up to six months. Histological analyses also demonstrated increased muscle regeneration.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Animals
  • Bone Marrow Cells / cytology*
  • Cell Differentiation
  • Cell Proliferation
  • Cell Survival
  • Female
  • Mesenchymal Stem Cell Transplantation
  • Mesenchymal Stem Cells / cytology*
  • Rabbits
  • Rats
  • Tissue Engineering / methods*
  • Tissue Scaffolds
  • Urinary Bladder / cytology*

Grants and funding

This project was funded by Urology Department, Jewish General Hospital, Montreal, Canada to WM, OL and JC. DLC holds a Canadian Institutes of Health Research postdoctoral fellowship. JG is a Georgia Cancer Coalition Distinguished Cancer Scholar. The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.