Figure 1

Design and application of MSC-loaded surgical mesh. A: Composition of MSC-loading mesh. B: Distribution of MSCs in the PGA-based scaffold. MSCs (green) were labeled with fluorescent dye SYTO®10. PGA fibers also showed green in auto-fluorescence (bar = 50 μm). C: The MSC-loaded mesh was used to repair the 3-mm defect (between the dot lines) created at the junction of Achilles tendon and gastrocnemius/soleus. The portion of scaffold/MSCs was inserted into the defect and surgical mesh was sutured to the surface of muscle and tendon (black arrowhead indicates a knot of surgical suture used to tie the scaffold and surgical mesh together. The suture was melted after autoclave).