Repair of Full-Thickness Articular Cartilage Defects by Basic Fibroblast Growth Factor (b-FGF)

The articular cartilage has a limited capacity for complete repair. The purpose of the research is to investigate the effect of basic fibroblast growth factor (b-FGF) on the healing of full-thickness osteochondral defects in adult Japanese White rabbits, b-FGF was mixed with a collagen gel and implanted into the defects created in the trochlear groove of femur. The repair tissue was examined grossly and histologically and evaluated with the use of a grading scale at 4,12, 24, and 50 weeks. The defects also were examined immunohistochemically for the presence of type-II collagen. At 4 weeks, treatmem with 100 ng of b-FG greatly stimulated cartilage repair grossly and histologically in comparison with the untreated defects (those filled with a plain collagen gel) . The average total scores on the histological grading scale were significantly better for the defects treated with b-FGF than for the untreated defects. Immunostaining showed the diffuse presence of this cartilage-specific collagen. These improvements were evident as long as 50 weeks t of b-FGF to postoperatively, although there was a little degenaration in the repair cartilage. The capacity accelerate the healing of full-thickness defects of articular cartilage emphasizes its promise as a practical and important candidate for cartilage repair.

Basic Fibroblast Growth Factor(b-FGF)

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