Robust, self-lubricating and injectable dECM-loaded hydrogels based on rapid photo-crosslinking for articular cartilage regeneration

The restoration of articular cartilage poses a significant clinical challenge due to its avascular nature and the limited presence of chondrocytes. Recently, there has been a growing emphasis on developing materials that emulate the properties of cartilage to facilitate high-quality repair. Here, an injectable dECM-loaded hydrogel (HS-dECM) with potent compressive strength and self-lubricating ability was prepared by photo-crosslinking for cartilage regeneration. The HS-dECM hydrogel was formed by integrating cartilage decellularized extracellular matrix (dECM) with hyaluronic acid methacrylate (HAMA) and sulfobetaine methacrylate (SBMA). Once injected into irregular defects, a robust hydrogel was rapidly formed in situ by UV irradiation with negligible heat release. The HS-dECM hydrogel exhibited robust compressive strength (898 ± 86 kPa), excellent fatigue resistance and a low friction coefficient, and had the feasibility of minimally invasive implantation. Besides, HS-dECM hydrogel promoted chondrogenic differentiation of BMSCs in vitro and repaired articular cartilage defects in rats. Therefore, the high-performance injectable HS-dECM hydrogel represents a novel minimally invasive strategy that significantly promote the cartilage injuries repair and regeneration.