Source: Georgia Institute of Technology
Date: January 11, 2010
A study published this week reinforces the potential value of stem cells in repairing major injuries involving the loss of bone structure. Georgia Tech mechanical engineering professor Robert Guldberg displays a histological image showing cellular bone and cartilage regeneration integrated with a scaffold that was implanted into a large bone defect. The study shows that delivering stem cells on a polymer scaffold to treat large areas of missing bone leads to improved bone formation and better mechanical properties compared to treatment with the scaffold alone. This type of therapeutic treatment could be a potential alternative to bone grafting operations. Details of the research were published in the early edition of the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences on January 11, 2010.
