Continuous perfusion culture for generation of functional tissue-engineered soft tissues

Culture conditions for generation of functional engineered tissues are designed to perform at least one of the following functions: (1) to establish spatially uniform cell distributions on 3D scaffolds; (2) to maintain desired concentrations of gases and nutrients; and (3) to provide efficient mass transfer to the growing tissues. In this study, we have investigated the effectiveness of a perfusion culture system for construction of tissue-engineered soft tissues (TESTs). TESTs were constructed on poly(d,l-lactide-co-glycolic acid) (PLGA) scaffolds with HDFs. We compared biological and mechanical properties of TESTs constructed by static and perfusion culture conditions. The TESTs generated by perfusion culture revealed significantly higher DNA (p < 0.01), GAG content (p < 0.01), and elastic modulus (p < 0.05) than TESTs constructed by static culture. Moreover, homogeneous distribution of HDFs and ECM throughout the scaffold was noted in TESTS constructed by perfusion culture, rather than spatial variation, which was observed in TESTs constructed by static culture. In an in vivo study, increased tissue regeneration was observed in TESTs fabricated by perfusion culture. Therefore, it is suggested that the perfusion culture system can constitute a more promising approach for constructing functional TESTs.