Electrospun poly(L-lactide-co-DL-lactide) nanofibrous scaffold as substrate for ex vivo limbal epithelial cell cultivation

0586028 - ÚMCH 2025 RIV NL eng J - Journal Article
Trousil, Jiří - Cabral, J. V. - Voukali, E. - Nováčková, Jitka - Pop-Georgievski, Ognen - Vacík, T. - Studený, P. - Studenovská, Hana - Jirsová, K.
Electrospun poly(L-lactide-co-DL-lactide) nanofibrous scaffold as substrate for ex vivo limbal epithelial cell cultivation.
Heliyon. Roč. 10, č. 10 (2024), č. článku e30970. ISSN 2405-8440. E-ISSN 2405-8440
R&D Projects: GA TA ČR(CZ) TO01000099; GA MŠMT(CZ) EH22_008/0004562; GA ČR(CZ) GA22-02836S
Institutional support: RVO:61389013
Keywords : limbal epithelial stem cells * biomaterial * tissue sealant
OECD category: Biomaterials (as related to medical implants, devices, sensors)
Impact factor: 4, year: 2022
Method of publishing: Open access
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2405844024070014?via%3Dihub

Ultrathin electrospun poly (l-lactide-co-dl-lactide) nanofibrous membranes coated with fibronectin were explored as scaffolds for the ex vivo cultivation of limbal epithelial cells (LECs) for the treatment of limbal stem cell deficiency. The developed scaffolds were compared with the “gold-standard” fibrin gel. The resulting membranes composed of nanofibers possessed a very low thickness of 4 μm and allowed very good optical transparency in the wet state. The fibronectin-coated nanofibrous scaffolds demonstrated LEC expansion and successful cultivation similar to that on fibrin gel. Unlike the regular cobblestone epithelial cell morphology on the fibrin gel, the nanofibrous scaffold presented a mostly irregular epithelial morphology with a shift to a mesenchymal phenotype, as confirmed by the upregulation of profibroblastic genes: ACTA2 (p = 0.023), FBLN1 (p < 0.001), and THY1 (p < 0.001). Both culture conditions revealed comparable expression of stem cell markers, including KLF4, ΔNp63α and ABCG2, emphasizing the promise of polylactide-based nanofibrous membranes for further investigations.
Permanent Link: https://hdl.handle.net/11104/0353701