Tissue engineer vagina

Mayer-Rokitansky-Küster-Hauser (MRKH) syndrome can be treated through numerous surgical and nonsurgical methods. We present a surgical technique in which a neovagina was reconstructed and shaped by a vaginal expander with acellular porcine dermal matrix (XCM Biologic Tissue Matrix) and mucosal interposition using microfragments harvested from the hymen. In our case, we found this procedure to be safe and effective, resulting in satisfactory sexual function and good cosmetic results, without donor site morbidity...

Vaginal atrophy (VA) is the thinning and drying of the vaginal walls, which can lead to a variety of symptoms. VA is usually initiated by decreasing estrogen levels in post-menopausal women; so, the traditional treatment of VA is hormone therapy (HT). Here, we sought nonhormonal therapies aimed at treating this condition safely and effectively. Collagen is an excellent biomaterial and has important biological functions in skin and mucosal tissues. In particular, collagen can bind to epithelial cells to promote proliferation and differentiation...

BACKGROUND: This study aims to retrieve the stereological data from rat vaginas for 3D printing tissue-engineered vaginas. METHODS: In this study, five female Sprague-Dawley rats, aged 8-12 weeks, were used to obtaining the vagina tissues. Each vagina was divided into eight segments fixed in 4% paraformaldehyde and embedded in paraffin, whose two consecutive sections of each block were stained using hematoxylin and eosin (H&E) and anti-α-actin antibody with immunohistochemistry staining, respectively...

PURPOSE: Despite high success rates in the treatment of urinary incontinence, complications related to the use of polypropylene (PP) meshes are still a concern, especially in vaginal prolapses surgeries. The objective of this study was to assess the effect of autologous platelet-rich plasma (PRP) coating on the integration of PP meshes implanted in the vaginal submucosa of rabbits. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Thirty adult New Zealand rabbits were randomly divided into two groups (n=15): PP, implanted with conventional PP meshes; and PRP, implanted with autologous PRP coated PP meshes...

In order to evaluate the effects of human umbilical cord-derived stem cells (HUMSCs) on the biocompatibility of and tissue response to a polypropylene (PP) mesh (Gynemesh™ PS) implanted in rat vaginas, HUMSCs were isolated and characterized in vitro and then combined with Gynemesh™ PS to create a tissue-engineered mesh. This tissue-engineered mesh and pure PP mesh were implanted in the submucosae of the posterior vaginal walls of rats. Mesh/tissue complexes were harvested at 1, 4 and 12 weeks after implantation...

Pelvic organ disorders affect up to one in four women in the United States. The prevalence of pelvic organ prolapse (POP) is increasing with each year, particularly in the setting of prolonged life expectancy and an aging population. Current treatment approaches, including polypropylene monofilaments are associated with numerous painful and worrisome side-effects. Therefore, scientists are looking for new solutions. A promising alternative to the current treatment is tissue engineering, which can be utilized to re-create support to the vagina and pelvic organs...

PURPOSE OF REVIEW: To review the current clinical management of stress urinary incontinence and pelvic organ prolapse following the adverse complications seen in the use of polypropylene mesh to treat both. RECENT FINDINGS: Materials developed for use in abdominal hernia repair have not proven risk-free when used to support pelvic organs particularly when inserted via the vagina. Following unacceptably high levels of severe complications when high-density polypropylene mesh is inserted via the vagina to treat pelvic organ prolapse, reported over the last decade, there is now an agreed consensus between surgeons about surgical approaches and materials, which should be recommended for use in stress urinary incontinence and pelvic organ prolapse...

Vaginal reconstruction is the main solution to the problem of sexuality and gender roles for patients with no vagina. A tissue-engineered vagina may be the best choice. However, many defects have been found in neovaginas reconstructed with a graft only. In this study, we investigated whether a stem cell-seeded graft would accelerate the morphological and functional recovery of neovaginas. CM-DiI-labeled bone marrow mesenchymal stem cell (MSC)-seeded small intestinal submucosa (SIS) (SIS+MSCs group) was used for vaginal reconstruction in a rat model; unseeded SIS (SIS group) was used as a control...

Various methods are available for vaginoplasty, but many of them have the drawbacks including surgical complexity and postoperative pain at the donor site. We herein evaluated the outcomes of vaginoplasty using tissue-engineered biomaterial graft. This study included 16 early stage cervical cancer patients who received curative surgery in combination with radiotherapy. They underwent vaginoplasty with tissue-engineered biological material, acellular dermal matrix (ADM). After treatment, a vaginal dilator was advised to be used for 6 months to prevent contraction of vagina...

AIMS: To fabricate a novel nanoyarn biomaterial via a dynamic liquid electrospinning system, and to simultaneously evaluate whether nanoyarn is capable of being applied as a urinary sling for future clinical transfer. METHODS: Nanoyarn was cultured with adipose-derived stem cells (ADSCs). Cell morphology and function were observed on nanoyarn. Female rats that underwent vagina dilatation (VD) and bilateral ovarian resection (BOR) were used as the urinary incontinence model...

Acellular matrix materials have been widely used to repair various tissues and organs. According to the plastic principle, when a part of the body is lost, it should be replaced with a similar material. Therefore, the use of a homologous organ-specific acellular vaginal tissue in vagina reconstruction repair surgery may show good results. However, the acellular vagina matrix (AVM) form large vertebrates is difficult to isolate. In this study, we described a multistep method to prepare porcine AVM and evaluated the efficacy of acellularization...

OBJECTIVE: To illustrate the marked differences between classical endocrinology that distributes hormones to all tissues of the body through the bloodstream and the science of intracrinology, whereby each cell of each peripheral tissue makes a small and appropriate amount of estrogens and androgens from the inactive precursor dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA), DHEA being mainly of adrenal origin. Because only the inactivated sex steroids are released in the blood, influence in the other tissues is avoided...

BACKGROUND: The use of wide pore lightweight polypropylene mesh to improve anatomical outcomes in the surgical repair of prolapse has been hampered by mesh complications. One of the prototype prolapse meshes has been found to negatively impact the vagina by inducing a decrease in smooth muscle volume and contractility and the degradation of key structural proteins (collagen and elastin), resulting in vaginal degeneration. Recently, bioscaffolds derived from extracellular matrix have been used to mediate tissue regeneration and have been widely adopted in tissue engineering applications...

BACKGROUND: Implantation of nonabsorbable polypropylene (PP) mesh in the vagina is the main surgical treatment for pelvic organ prolapse (POP); however, clinical outcomes remain controversial and far from satisfactory. In particular, reducing the exposure or erosion of vaginal implants to obtain improved functional reconstruction is challenging. There is an urgent need for the development of new materials and/or products for POP treatment. A nanofibrous biomimetic mesh was recently developed to address this issue...

OBJECTIVE: To explore the biocompatibility of the poly-lactide-co-glycolide (PLGA)/collagen type I scaffold with rat vaginal epithelial cells, and the feasibility of using PLGA/collagen type I as scaffold to reconstruct vagina by the tissue engineering. METHODS: PLGA/collagen type I scaffold was prepared with PLGA covered polylysine and collagen type I. The vaginal epithelial cells of Sprague Dawley rat of 10-12 weeks old were cultured by enzyme digestion method...

BACKGROUND: Tenofovir disoproxil fumarate (TDF), a prodrug of tenofovir (TFV), may be ideal for topical HIV preexposure prophylaxis because it has higher tissue and cell permeability than TFV; is not adversely impacted by seminal proteins; and its active metabolite, TFV-diphosphate (TFV-DP), has a long intracellular half-life. We engineered a TDF eluting polyurethane reservoir intravaginal ring (IVR) to provide near constant mucosal antiretroviral concentrations. METHODS: A first-in-human randomized placebo-controlled trial was conducted to assess the safety and pharmacokinetics of the TDF IVR in healthy, sexually abstinent women (15 TDF and 15 placebo)...

Agenesia of the Müllerian ducts is a low-frequency congenital disease but with devastating effects on women's reproductive health. In this paper we present two cases of women affected by Mayer-Rokitansky-Küster-Hauser syndrome (MRKH). First case was a 17-year-old woman with aplasia of the upper vagina and absence of uterus. No other defects were found and was classified as type 1-MRKH. Second case was 18-year-old woman with absence of uterus, escoliosis and polycystic ovary syndrome, classified as type II-MRKH...

Grafting material for vaginal reconstruction commonly includes the bowel, peritoneum, skin, and amniotic membrane. Bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) have the potential of multilineage differentiation into a variety of cells and have been widely explored in tissue engineering. In the current study, we examined whether MSCs could be differentiated to vaginal epithelial cells (VECs) upon co-culturing with VECs. We also examined whether Wnt/β-catenin signaling pathway is implicated in such differentiation...

The anorectal and urogenital systems arise from a common embryonic structure termed cloaca. Subsequent development leads to the division/septation of the cloaca into the urethra, urinary bladder, vagina, anal canal, and rectum. Defective cloacal development and the resulting anorectal and urogenital malformations are some of the most severe congenital anomalies encountered in children. In the most severe form in females, the rectum, vagina, and urethra fail to develop separately and drain via a single common channel known as a cloaca into the perineum...

Mayer-Rokitansky-Kuster-Hauser (MRKH) syndrome is a disorder in women that presents as Mullerian agenesis. These patients present internal genitalia abnormalities that include the absence of a uterus and the upper two-thirds of the vagina. In this review, current diagnostic methods, accompanying complications (congenital and psychological) and non-surgical and surgical treatments are summarized. Ultrasound and MRI have been the most documented options in MRKH syndrome diagnosis. Many women with MRKH syndrome have renal, skeletal, hearing or cardiac congenital anomalies and increased levels of psychological distress...