Work

An electrospun membrane incorporating lipocalin 2-enhanced exosomes effectively facilitated the repair of critical bone defects

Year: 2025

Type: article

Abstract: The clinical management of critical size bone defects (CSBD) remains a formidable clinical challenge, with no universally efficacious treatment currently established. The intricate interrelationship between bone formation and vascular plasticity constitutes a fundamental prerequisite for successful repair of CSBD. Lipocalin 2 (LCN2), a secretory protein identified within extracellular vesicles derived from osteoblasts, has exhibited notable bone protective properties. In this study, we successfully synthesized a biomimetic electrospun membrane incorporating LCN2-enhanced exosomes, employing polycaprolactone (PCL) as the foundational material, designated PCL/PEI@L-EXO. Cellular treatment with this membrane yielded substantial upregulation of osteogenesis-related genes (Runx2, 11.4-fold; Sp7, 3.0-fold; Bglap, 2.6-fold) alongside pronounced downregulation of adipogenic differentiation-related genes (Klf9, 78.3 %; Leptin, 98.5 %; Pparγ, 86.2 %) relative to the PCL membrane. Transplantation of the PCL/PEI@L-EXO membrane into the cranial defects markedly accelerated the bone healing rate relative to the PCL membrane. Such enhancement manifested through elevated bone volume fraction (BV/TV) (4 weeks, 2.2-fold; 8 weeks, 3.5-fold), augmented trabecular number (TB·N) (4 weeks, 1.2-fold; 8 weeks, 1.3-fold), and enhanced bone mineral density (BMD) (4 weeks, 1.2-fold; 8 weeks, 1.7-fold).

Source: International Journal of Biological Macromolecules

DOI: 10.1016/j.ijbiomac.2025.146674