Objective: To determine the effective glucose diffusion coefficient in cell-seeded porous scaffolds to understand the importance of nutrient diffusion in tissue engineering bioreactors.
Results: Cell growth changed the morphological structure of the scaffolds decreasing the effective pore space and, inevitably, decreasing the effective glucose diffusivity in the chosen scaffolds, namely, collagen, poly(L-lactide) and poly(caprolactone) scaffolds from 3.7 × 10(-9) to 3.2 × 10(-9) m(2)/s, 1.4 × 10(-10) to 9.1 × 10(-11) m(2)/s and 1.8 × 10(-10) to 1.3 × 10(-10) m(2)/s, respectively.
Conclusions: The presence of cells over time during cell culture reduces the mobility of glucose. The results can predict the glucose concentration profiles in thick engineered tissues.
Keywords: Diffusion coefficient; Glucose; Osteoblast cell; Scaffold; Tissue engineering.