Nanocomposite biomimetic scaffold in knee osteochondral defect regeneration: an animal study

The treatment of osteochondral defects represents a main concern in modern orthopaedic practice, as two different tissues (bone and articular cartilage), characterized by different intrinsic healing capacity, are involved. Thus an innovative, bi-composite, multilayer, biomimetic scaffold reproducing the whole osteochondral compartment was developed for the treatment of O.C. defects. The present scaffold can be potentially engineered (with cells, growth factors) according to clinical practice, to stimulate tissue regeneration. The study aim was to evaluate, in a sheep model, macroscopic and histological results after scaffold implant in osteochondral defect repair