Fig. 10

Histological development of implanted seeded OptiMaix 3D scaffolds. Similar to the unseeded OptiMaix 3D, the degradation has started after 6 weeks, but large pieces of the scaffold can still be found. At 18 weeks, parts of the scaffold structure are encapsulated by fibrotic tissue (α-SMA), which might be due to the protein component of the cell culture medium. This phenomenon cannot be found at later time points. As in the unseeded scaffolds, the urothelium is closed at 18 weeks and gradually building a smooth layer like in the native tissue. Overall, no differences can be found between the building of a new urothelial lining (PanCK), the degradation of the scaffolds (EVG), blood vessels (CD34, VEGF) or nerve fibre ingrowth (S100) compared to the unseeded scaffold. S scaffold, M muscle, CT connective tissue. Scale bar = 50 µm