Decellularized Porcine Aorta as a Scaffold for Human Induced Pluripotent Stem Cell-Derived Mesenchymal Stem Cells in Tissue Engineering

Tissue engineering has been an integral part of regenerative medicine. Functional biomimetic structures were assembled by combining appropriate scaffolds with specific cells. The decellularization of animal tissue preserved the natural biochemical components and structural properties of the extracellular matrix (ECM) of specific organs, thereby providing a suitable niche for tissue-specific cell differentiation and growth. In this study, the extracellular matrix (ECM) of the porcine aorta was obtained through trypsin-based decellularization. The resulting porcine aortic ECM retained a favorable collagen composition, exhibited no cytotoxicity, and demonstrated chemophilic properties for mesenchymal stem cells. Human adipose-derived mesenchymal stem cells (hADSCs) and human induced pluripotent stem cell-derived mesenchymal stem cells (hiMSCs) were transplanted onto the decellularized porcine aortic ECM, where successful differentiation into a mature cartilage layer was observed. These findings suggested that the porcine aortic ECM could serve as a potential scaffold with tubular and linear structures for tissue engineering applications. Functional human iMSCs (induced-mesenchymal stem cells) were generated from human iPSCs (induced-pluripotent stem cells) and analyzed for differences compared to primary MSCs via RNA-seq. The hiMSCs were applied to decellularized porcine aortic ECM (extracellular matrix), demonstrating chondrogenic differentiation and confirming the usability of xenogeneic ECM.