FIG. 6.

Histology of healing of critical size calvarial defects 3 months after injury. Nontreated defects show no or minimal wound healing and coverage of the lesion with a thin fibrous layer that is comprised of collagen. (A) Hematoxylin and Eosin (H&E) staining, (B): Masson's Trichrome stain (MTS), original magnification of (A, B) is 40×. H&E (C) and Masson's Trichrome (D) staining of defects treated with CTS-HA-GP scaffolds without mMSCs show new bone formation (red), collagen deposition (blue), and significant scaffold interaction. Original magnification 40×, inserts are 100×. H&E (E) and Masson's Trichrome (F) staining of defects treated with CTS-HA-GP scaffolds pressed with mMSCs indicates very similar results to those scaffolds without cells, but does appear to have enhanced tissue growth and new bone formation along the periphery of the scaffold (brown). Higher magnification of a defect treated with CTS-HA-GP scaffolds seeded with mMSCs reveals endochondral-like tissue formation along the host–scaffold interface (F). Original magnification 40×, inserts are 100×. Magnification for (C–F) are 100×. For details, see text. Scale bars: (A, B): 250 μm; (C–F): 100 μm. Color images available online at www.liebertpub.com/tea