Figure 3.

Adipose-derived stem cells cultured on silk-based ligament grafts (A) produce sheets of extracellular matrix proteins (C) under mechanical stimulation via a custom-made bioreactor system (B: design and construction in cooperation with the Technical University of Vienna, Institute of Materials Science and Technology). A: The silk-based anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) scaffold is produced of Bombyx mori silk fibers in a wire-rope design; B: The scaffold is seeded with ASCs for 24 h and then transferred into bioreactor and cultured under linear and rotational displacement for 10 d. The mechanically stimulated ACL scaffolds show sheets of extracellular matrix. The arrow in the bottom panel indicates an artefact of scanning electron microscopy preparation. In this area, the covering extracellular matrix sheet has been flushed away due to too intense flushing, allowing the view to the underlying silk fibers.