An in vitro investigation of the PEMA/THFMA polymer system as a biomaterial for cartilage repair

A polymer system consisting of poly(ethyl methacrylate)/tetrahydrofurfuryl methacrylate (PEMA/THFMA) was investigated as a biomaterial for cartilage r epair using chondrocyte culture. The PEMA/THFMA system and Thermanox contro l were shown to support chondrocytes seeded directly onto the surface for u p to 28 days in culture. Differences were seen between the PEMA/TKFMA syste m and Thermanox in DNA content, proliferation and glycosaminoglycon (GAG) s ynthesis. There was a significantly greater medium : cell GAG ratio for the PEMA/THFMA system compared to Thermanox. A greater number of chondrocytes isolated from the superficial zone of bovine cartilage attached to the PEMA /THFMA system compared to cells isolated from the deep zone, whereas the co nverse was seen for Thermanox. Matrix constituents including collagen type II were synthesised indicating that the differentiated phenotype was mainta ined for some of the chondrocytes, although the production of type I collag en indicated that dedifferentiation of some of the chondrocytes had occurre d. In conclusion, this study has shown that the PEMA/THFMA system can suppo rt chondrocytes in vitro and together with further investigations could lea d to the development of the polymer as an ideal candidate for articular car tilage repair. (C) 2000 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.