Engineered Decellularized Tendon Matrix Putty Preserves Native Tendon Bioactivity to Promote Cell Proliferation and Enthesis Repair

Figure 7

Rotator cuff repair (RCR) surgery was performed in a rabbit model with a chronic rotator cuff tear (n = 4/group). (a) Initial rotator cuff tear of the supraspinatus; (b) DTM placed under the supraspinatus 6 weeks after the initial tear; (c) repair of the initial tear, suture-anchoring the supraspinatus to the greater tuberosity. 8 weeks following the repair, shoulders were harvested, processed through histological analysis, and stained with (d–f) HBQ, (g–i) H&E, and (j–l) Picrosirius Red. Images display the bone, fibrocartilage, and tendon tissues at the tendon enthesis in (d, g, j) contralateral shoulders, (e, h, k) repair only, and (f, i, l) DTM treatment with repair. T = tidemark; FC = fibrocartilaginous zone; B = bone; arrow in (h) shows collagen fiber orientation. Scale bars represent 100 μm.