Microcomputed tomography characterization of neovascularization in bone tissue engineering applications.

Vasculogenesis and angiogenesis have been studied for decades using numerous in vitro and in vivo systems, fulfilling the need to elucidate the mechanisms involved in these processes and to test potential therapeutic agents that inhibit or promote neovascularization. Bone tissue engineering in particular has benefited from the application of proangiogenic strategies, considering the need for an adequate vascular supply during healing and the challenges associated with the vascularization of scaffolds implanted in vivo. Conventional methods of assessing the in vivo angiogenic response to tissue-engineered constructs tend to rely on a two-dimensional assessment of microvessel density within representative histological sections without elaboration of the true vascular tree.

Development and characterization of a rabbit alveolar bone nonhealing defect model.

The aim of this study was to develop an easily accessible and reproducible, nonhealing alveolar bone defect in the rabbit mandible. Twenty-four adult male New Zealand white rabbits underwent unilateral mandibular defect surgery. Two types of defect in the premolar/molar region were compared: (1) a 10-mm "full thickness" cylindrical defect removing both cortical plates and the intervening trabecular bone and tooth roots; (2) a 10-mm "partial thickness" cylindrical defect removing only the lateral bony cortex, trabecular bone, and tooth roots.