RT Journal Article SR Electronic T1 Exogenous transforming growth factor beta 1 alone does not improve early healing of medial collateral ligament in rabbits JF Canadian Journal of Surgery JO CAN J SURG FD Canadian Medical Association SP 330 OP 336 VO 45 IS 5 A1 Kevin A. Hildebrand A1 Histada Hiraoka A1 David A. Hart A1 Nigel G. Shrive A1 Cyril B. Frank YR 2002 UL http://canjsurg.ca/content/45/5/330.abstract AB Objective: To determine whether transforming growth factor beta 1 (TGF-β1) improves early ligament healing.Design: Experimental, controlled study of medial collateral ligaments (MCLs) in rabbits’ knees.Setting: Research laboratory.Subjects: Sixteen skeletally mature, New Zealand White female rabbits.Interventions: Ten rabbits had a standardized gap injury made in the MCL of both knees. Three weeks later, a second operation was performed to inject 7 μg of TGF-β1 in a carrier solution into the right knee MCL, while the left knee MCL was injected with carrier alone. The rabbits were killed 3 weeks after the injection of TGF-β1 (6 weeks after the original injury). Six of the rabbits (12 knees) had no operation on the MCL and served as external normal controls.Outcome measures: Biomechanical measures of the femur–MCL–tibia complex. Histologic evaluation of MCL cell and matrix organization. Transmission electron microscopy measures of MCL fibril diameters.Results: There were no statistically significant differences in the biomechanical measures, fibril diameter distributions and histologic evaluation of the injured MCLs treated with TGF-β1 or carrier alone. Both groups of injured MCLs were significantly different from normal MCLs.Conclusions: The results indicate that the dosage and route of delivery of TGF-β1 did not lead to overt improvement in the healing of the injured MCL. Whether different doses or delivery methods, alone or in combination with TGF-β1, or other growth factors would lead to improvement remains to be determined.