Construction of Artificial Laminae of the Vertebral Arch Using Bone Marrow Mesenchymal Stem Cells Transplanted in Collagen Sponge

Study Design. A rabbit laminectomy model was used to evaluate the efficacy of artificial laminae of vertebral arch using bone marrow-derived osteoblasts transplanted in a collagen sponge. Objective. The objective of this study is to reconstruct the artificial laminae of vertebral arch using bone marrow-derived osteoblasts transplanted in a collagen sponge on a rabbit model. Summary of Background Data. Because the laminectomy and semilaminectomy can effectively decompress the spinal cord and expand the vertebral canal, they have been performed as routine surgical procedures. However, long-term follow-up results show that these procedures can lead to many serious complications. A variety of strategies have been used to solve these complications, but there are few experiments to determine the efficacy of reconstructing the laminae of vertebral arch using bone marrow-derived osteoblasts and the collagen sponge. Methods. The bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells (BMSCs) from the bone marrow in the femur of 2-week-old rabbits were obtained by centrifugation and adhesion. The BMSCs were induced to differentiate into osteoblasts, which were transplanted into collagen sponge to construct the tissue-engineering bone. A total of 48 rabbits were randomly divided into three groups. Lumbar laminectomies were performed on all of the rabbits. Group A was the control. Groups B and C were implanted with collagen sponge and tissue-engineering bone, respectively. The artificial laminae of the vertebral arch were examined qualitatively by imageology and histomorphometry. Results. The artificial laminae of the vertebral arch successfully formed 4 weeks after the operation in group C; computed tomography examination at 4 weeks showed that the new laminae of vertebral arch were formed, and that the vertebral canal was intact. Conclusion. The artificial laminae of the vertebral arch can be successfully constructed using tissue engineering of transplanted BMSCs.