Cryo-copolymerization preparation of dextran-hyaluronate based supermacroporous cryogel scaffolds for tissue engineering applications

Abstract

Dextran-hyaluronate (Dex-HA) based supermacroporous cryogel scaffolds for soft tissue engineering were prepared by free radical cryo-copolymerization of aqueous solutions containing the dextran methacrylate (Dex-MA) and hyaluronate methacrylate (HA-MA) at various macromonomer concentrations under the freezing condition. It was observed that the suitable total concentration of macromonomers for the preparation of Dex-HA cryogel scaffold with satisfied properties was 5% (w/w) at the HA-MA concentration of 1% (w/v), which was then used to produce the test scaffold. The obtained cryogel scaffold with 5% (w/w) macromonomer solution had high water permeability (5.1 × 10^-12 m²) and high porosity (92.4%). The pore diameter examined by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) was in a broad range of 50–135 µm with the mean pore diameter of 91 µm. Furthermore, the cryogel scaffold also had good elastic nature with the elastic modulus of 17.47±1.44 kPa. The culture of 3T3-L1 preadipocyte within the scaffold was investigated and observed by SEM. Cells clustered on the pore walls and grew inside the scaffold indicating the Dex-HA cryogel scaffold could be a promising porous biomaterial for applications in tissue engineering.

Key words： cryogel scaffold; tissue engineering; dextran; hyaluronate; 3T3-L1 preadipocyte

Acknowledgments

This work was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant Nos. 20876145, 21036005), the Science and Technology Cooperation Project between China-Europe Country’s Governments from the Ministry of Science and Technology of China (No. 1017) and the Zhejiang Provincial Natural Science Foundation of China (No. Y4080326).

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