Dimethyloxaloylglycine increases bone repair capacity of adipose-derived stem cells in the treatment of osteonecrosis of the femoral head

Zhu, Zhen-Hong; Song, Wen-Qi; Zhang, Chang-Qing; Yin, Ji-Min

In the present study, DMOG-treated ASCs were implanted into the necrotic area of the femoral head to aid core decompression in improving bone healing. Micro-CT and histological results indicated there was increased bone regeneration in the normal ASCs group than in the group that underwent core decompression only, which suggests that ASCs could improve bone healing on their own. Increased newly formed bone was observed in the DMOG-treated ASCs group than in the normal ASCs group, which indicated DMOG could enhance the bone healing capacity of ASCs in the necrotic area. Micro-CT and immunohistochemistry detection of CD31 showed that vessels formation was also increased in the DMOG-treated ASCs group than in the other three groups. This may be because DMOG could increase the expression and secretion of certain angiogenic factors in ASCs in vivo by stabilizing the HIF-1α expression in cells, which has been demonstrated by previous experiments (43) . It is hypothesized that angiogenesis is closely associated with osteogenesis, and that neovascularization is an favorable element in bone regeneration. Therefore, the improved local blood supply may also contribute to bone healing in the necrotic area.