AccScience Publishing / IJB / Online First / DOI: 10.36922/IJB025170168
RESEARCH ARTICLE
Early Access

3D-Printed hydrogel scaffolds with NRG1 sustained-release microspheres for enhanced dedifferentiation and myelin regeneration in peripheral nerve injury

Zhang Guanhua2† Song Enpeng1† Yu Peng1† Wei Jie5 Wang Yaqiong4* Liu Jie3* Hou Bo1*
Show Less
1 Department of Neurosurgery, Lingnan Hospital, The Third Affiliated Hospital of Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, China
2 Department of Cerebrovascular Surgery, The Third Affiliated Hospital of Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, China
3 Department of Neurosurgery, Hezhou People's Hospital, Guangxi Province, China.
4 Department of Electron Microscopy, Zhongshan School of Medicine, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, China
5 Guangzhou Medical University, Guangzhou, China
†These authors contributed equally to this work.
Received: 26 April 2025 | Accepted: 16 June 2025 | Published online: 16 June 2025
© 2025 by the Author(s). This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License ( https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ )
Abstract

Remyelination is critical for functional recovery following peripheral nerve injury (PNI). Although autologous Schwann cell (ASC) transplantation promotes effective myelin repair, its clinical translation remains limited by donor availability and associated morbidity. Bone marrow-derived Schwann-like cells (B-dSCs) offer a promising alternative; however, their inadequate dedifferentiation capacity significantly constrains therapeutic outcomes. Neuregulin-1 (NRG1), a key axonal signal, effectively induces Schwann cell dedifferentiation but requires precise, sustained delivery to exert optimal effects. Here, we developed a 3D-printed hydrogel scaffold incorporating NRG1-loaded sustained-release microspheres (NRG1-SRMs) to achieve localized, prolonged NRG1 release. In vitro studies demonstrated that NRG1 significantly enhanced dedifferentiation and remyelination capacity of B-dSCs in a dorsal root ganglion (DRG) co-culture system. Mechanistically, NRG1 promoted dedifferentiation by activating the c-Jun N-terminal kinase (JNK) signaling pathway—a pivotal regulator of Schwann cell plasticity. Pharmacological inhibition of JNK markedly suppressed NRG1-induced dedifferentiation and downregulated myelin-associated gene expression, confirming pathway specificity. Furthermore, the 3D-printed scaffold effectively maintained uniform NRG1 distribution, facilitating enhanced axonal regeneration and improved myelin integrity. Collectively, these findings highlight the essential role of JNK signaling in NRG1-driven Schwann cell dedifferentiation, underscoring the therapeutic promise of combining sustained-release systems with engineered cell therapies to advance peripheral nerve repair.

Keywords
Peripheral nerve injury
JNK pathway
Schwann cells
Neuregulin-1
Dedifferentiation
Sustained-release microspheres
Funding
This research was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant No. 82201785), the Guangdong Basic and Applied Basic Research Foundation, Provincial Enterprise Joint Fund - General Project (Grant No. 2022A1515220046), and Science and Technology Projects in Guangzhou,City-University (Institute) Enterprise Joint Funded Project (Grant No. 202201020633;2024A03J0277).
Conflict of interest
The authors declare no potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.
Share
Back to top
International Journal of Bioprinting, Electronic ISSN: 2424-8002 Print ISSN: 2424-7723, Published by AccScience Publishing