Abstract:Objective To observe the effect of rabbit anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) reconstruction with irradiated Achilles tendon allograft, which was added with PDGF-BB、VEGF165 or TGFβ1 genes transduced mesenchymal stem cells(MSCs). Methods Forty male New Zealand white rabbits were divided randomly into five groups with eight animals for each:(1)control group, (2) MSCs group, (3) PDGF-BB transfected MSCs group, (4) VEGF165 transfected MSCs group, (5) TGFβ1 transfected MSCs group. The ACL was replaced with a Achilles tendon allograft. The 2×106 cells with 100 μL fibrin sealant was applied on the Achilles allograft. All animals were sacrificed 12 weeks after ACL reconstruction. Results Histologic findings showed that newly formed vessels and infiltrative fibroblasts were more abundant in VEGF165 group than other guoups. Biomechanical properties of PDGF-BB or TGFα1 groups were significantly better than B control on the max load, the stiffness, the absorbed energy and the maximum tensile strength (P<0.05). The max load, the stiffness and the absorbed energy of MSCs or VEGF165 groups were higher than that of control group,while there were no significant differences (P>0.05). The snap displacement of VEGF165 group was significantly higher than that of control group (P<0.05). The rupture site was all at the body part of the graft, normal ACL and Achilles. Conclusion VEGF165 gene transfected MSCs could significantly promote angiogenesis in the reconstructed ligament, but it did not enhance the mechanical properties of the reconstructed ligament in the rabbit model. Both PDGF-BB gene and TGFβ1 gene transfected MSCs could accelerate the remoedling of the reconstructed ligament.