High-performance Artificial Ligament Made from Helical Polyester Fibers Wrapped with Aligned Carbon Nanotube Sheets.

Repairing high-load connective tissues, such as ligaments, by surgically implanting artificial grafts after injury is challenging because they lack biointegration with host bones for stable interfaces. Herein, we propose a high-performance helical composite fiber (HCF) ligament by wrapping aligned carbon nanotube sheets around polyester fibers. Anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction surgery showed that HCF grafts could induce effective bone regeneration, thus allowing the narrowing of bone tunnel defects. Such repair of the bone tunnel is in strong contrast to the tunnel enlargement of more than 50% for commercial artificial ligaments made from bare polyester fibers. Rats reconstructed with this HCF ligament showed normal jumping, walking, and running without limping. Our work allows bone regeneration in vivo through a one-step surgery without seeding cells or transforming growth factors, thereby opening an avenue for high-performance artificial tissues. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.