Injectable photo-crosslinking cartilage decellularized extracellular matrix for cartilage tissue regeneration

Cartilage decellularized extracellular matrix (CDEM) is a promising biomaterial for preparing tissue engineering scaffolds, and CDEM-based hydrogels constitute an ideal choice for repairing cartilage damage. In this study, CDEM powders and photo-responsive hyaluronic acid (pHA) were successfully fabricated into injectable and photo-crosslinkable hydrogel (CDEM-pHA). The rheological properties of CDEM-pHA indicated that CDEM-pHA exhibited shear-thinning behavior, and the storage modulus of the hydrogel increased with increasing UV irradiation. Chondrocytes were loaded into CDEM-pHA and implanted into the subcutaneous tissue of nude mice for eight weeks; the results indicated that CDEM-pHA combined with chondrocytes successfully regenerated mature cartilage in vivo. This study established a novel strategy for preparing CDEM-based hydrogel for cartilage regeneration.