Bratislava Medical Journal Vol.116, No.1, p.64-68, 2015

Objective: To observe the effect of transplantation of marrow mesenchymal stem cells (BMSCs) transfected with insulin-like growth factor-1 (IGF-1) on fracture healing of rats with diabetes and discuss the gene therapy for diabetic fracture.
Methods: 60 8-week-old male Wistar rats weighing 180–200 g were divided into the control group and experimental group at random. All of them suffered from right tibia fracture following the model of diabetes induced by streptozotocin. BMSCs were transfected with Ad- IGF-1 and BMSCs of the appropriate group were transplanted to part of the fracture area. 6 rats were selected from each group at 1, 2, 3, 5 and 7 weeks after the surgery. Local bone callus was stained with hematoxylin-eosin (H-E) and IGF-1 in the bone callus and serum was tested.
Results: Osteoid tissues formed at 3 weeks in the experimental group; mature lamellar bone formed at 7 weeks in the experimental group; fibrous bone callus was observed in the control group.

IGF-1 in bone callus of the experimental group is increasing and significantly different from that of the control group (p < 0.05).

Concentrations of IGF-1 in the serum of the two groups were increasing gradually from the first week. The control group reached its peak in the 5th week. The experimental group reached a high concentration in the 5th week and maintained a high concentration in the 7th week.

The differences at various times between the two groups have statistical significance (p < 0.05).

Conclusion: Transplantation of BMSCs transfected with IGF-1 gene can promote fracture healing of rats with diabetes (Tab. 4, Fig. 1, Ref. 20).