Injectable polyethylene glycol-fibrinogen hydrogel adjuvant improves survival and differentiation of transplanted mesoangioblasts in acute and chronic skeletal-muscle degeneration

Background: Cell-transplantation therapies have attracted attention as treatments for skeletal-muscle disorders; however, such research has been severely limited by poor cell survival. Tissue engineering offers a potential solution to this problem by providing biomaterial adjuvants that improve survival and engraftment of donor cells. Methods: In this study, we investigated the use of intra-muscular transplantation of mesoangioblasts (vessel-associated progenitor cells), delivered with an injectable hydrogel biomaterial directly into the tibialis anterior (TA) muscle of acutely injured or dystrophic mice. The hydrogel cell carrier, made from a polyethylene glycol-fibrinogen (PF) matrix, is polymerized in situ together with mesoangioblasts to form a resorbable cellularized implant. Results: Mice treated with PF and mesoangioblasts showed enhanced cell engraftment as a result of increased survival and differentiation compared with the same cell population injected in aqueous saline solution. Conclusion: Both PF and mesoangioblasts are currently undergoing separate clinical trials: their combined use may increase chances of efficacy for localized disorders of skeletal muscle.