Regenerative Medicine and Restoration of Joint Function

Currently amputation, arthrodesis (joint fusion), or joint replacement are used to treat a joint with an intra-articular fracture or destroyed by a combat injury. Generation of personalized, anatomically shaped biological implants formed using techniques of regenerative medicine in conjunction with biodegradable biomaterial structures to restore a damaged articular joint surface to normal tissue structure, form and function is one way to overcome the limitations associated with current treatment methods. The aims of this study are to: 1) identify the parameters that generate anatomically shaped bone substitutes of optimal composition and structure with an articulating profile. 2) to develop a source of chondrocytes that can generate sufficient amounts of a cartilage layer to cover the bone substitute; and 3) to evaluate the structures formed in a preclinical model. The ongoing studies will further our understanding of the regulation of cell differentiation to chondrocytes and the bone substitute properties required to form a biological joint replacement.