ArticleKnee surgery, sports traumatology, arthroscopy : official journal of the ESSKA2019
Agili-C implant promotes the regenerative capacity of articular cartilage defects in an ex vivo model.
Article in Knee surgery, sports traumatology, arthroscopy : official journal of the ESSKA, 2019. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 16 papers.
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Who cites it
16 citing papers in PubMed, 45 citations in OpenAlex.
- Female patients report comparable results to males after the implantation of an aragonite-based scaffold for the treatment of knee chondral and osteochondral defects: a gender-based analysis of a RCT at 4 years' follow-up.Journal of orthopaedics and traumatology : official journal of the Italian Society of Orthopaedics and Traumatology · 2025Trial
- Surgical Technique for Treating Focal Osteochondral Knee Lesions Using an Aragonite-Based Biphasic Scaffold.Arthroscopy techniques · 2026Article
- The osteochondral regeneration paradox: why biomimetic scaffolds are biologically superior but injectable systems dominate the clinic.RSC advances · 2026Review
- Aragonite-Based Scaffolds Are Effective Osteochondral Graft Substitutes for Osteochondral Defects of the Knee: A Systematic Review.Arthroscopy, sports medicine, and rehabilitation · 2025Review
- Combined Unicompartmental Knee Arthroplasty and Trochlear Porous Calcium Carbonate Scaffold Implantation: Surgical Technique.Arthroscopy techniques · 2025Article
- Clinical Experience With an Aragonite-Based Scaffold Implant for Knee Cartilage Repair: A Multicenter Case Series.Cureus · 2025Article
- Report on Evolving Indications, Techniques, and Outcome of Novel and Innovative Surgical procedure - Agili C®.Current reviews in musculoskeletal medicine · 2025Review
- Treatment of knee cartilage lesions in 2024: From hyaluronic acid to regenerative medicine.Journal of experimental orthopaedics · 2024Review
- Articular cartilage and osteochondral tissue engineering techniques: Recent advances and challenges.Bioactive materials · 2021Review
- Joint Surface Lesions in the Knee Treated with an Acellular Aragonite-Based Scaffold: A 3-Year Follow-Up Case Series.Cartilage · 2021Article
- Algorithm for Treatment of Focal Cartilage Defects of the Knee: Classic and New Procedures.Cartilage · 2021Review
- Methods of Modification of Mesenchymal Stem Cells and Conditions of Their Culturing for Hyaline Cartilage Tissue Engineering.Biomedicines · 2021Review
- Osteochondral tissue engineering: Perspectives for clinical application and preclinical development.Journal of orthopaedic translation · 2021Review
- Treatment of hallux rigidus by a novel bi-phasic aragonite-based implant: results of a two year multi-centre clinical trial.International orthopaedics · 2021Article
- Mechanical Stress Inhibits Early Stages of Endogenous Cell Migration: A Pilot Study in an Ex Vivo Osteochondral Model.Polymers · 2020Article
- Osteochondral Injury, Management and Tissue Engineering Approaches.Frontiers in cell and developmental biology · 2020Review
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
6 authors at 3 institutions in 3 countries.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
purposeOsteochondral implants are currently adopted for the treatment of symptomatic full-thickness chondral and osteochondral defects. Agili-C™ is a cell-free aragonite-based scaffold which aims to reproduce the original structure and function of the articular joint while directing the growth and regeneration of both cartilage and its underlying subchondral bone. The goal of the present study was to investigate the ex vivo mechanisms of action (MOA) of the Agili-C™ implant in the repair of full-thickness cartilage defects. In particular, we tested whether Agili-C™ implant has the potential to stimulate cartilage ingrowth through chondrocytes migration into the 3D interconnected porous structure of the scaffold, along with maintaining their viability and phenotype and the deposition of hyaline cartilage matrix.
methodsArticular cartilage samples were collected through the Gift of Hope Organ and Tissue Donor Network (Itasca, IL) within 24 h from death. For this study, cartilage from a total of 14 donors was used. To model a chondral defect, donut-shaped cartilage explants were prepared from each tissue specimen. The chondral phase of the Agili-C™ implant was placed inside the tissue in full contact and press fit manner. Cartilage explants with the Agili-C™ implant inside were cultured for 60 days. As a control, the same donut-shaped cartilage explants were cultured without Agili-C™, under the same culture conditions.
resultsUsing fresh human cadaveric articular cartilage tissue in a 60-day culture, it was demonstrated that chondrocytes were able to migrate into the Agili-C™ scaffold and contribute to the deposition of the extracellular matrix (ECM) rich in collagen type II and aggrecan, and lacking collagen type I. Additionally, we were able to show the formation of a layer populated by progenitor-like cells on the articular surface of the implant.
conclusionsThe analysis of samples taken from knee and ankle joints of human donors with a wide age range and both genders supports the potential of Agili-C™ scaffold to stimulate cartilage regeneration and repair. Based on these results, the present scaffold can be used in the clinical practice as a one-step procedure to treat full-thickness chondral defects.
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