Preparation of a Fucoidan-Grafted Hyaluronan Composite Hydrogel for the Induction of Osteoblast Differentiation in Osteoblast-Like Cells

Fu-Yin Hsu; Jheng-Jie Chen; Wen-Chieh Sung; Pai-An Hwang

doi:10.3390/ma14051168

Preparation of a Fucoidan-Grafted Hyaluronan Composite Hydrogel for the Induction of Osteoblast Differentiation in Osteoblast-Like Cells

Materials (Basel). 2021 Mar 2;14(5):1168. doi: 10.3390/ma14051168.

Authors

Fu-Yin Hsu¹, Jheng-Jie Chen¹, Wen-Chieh Sung², Pai-An Hwang^{1

3}

Affiliations

¹ Department of Bioscience and Biotechnology, National Taiwan Ocean University, Keelung City 20224, Taiwan.
² Department of Food Science, National Taiwan Ocean University, Keelung City 20224, Taiwan.
³ Center of Excellence for the Oceans, National Taiwan Ocean University, Keelung City 20224, Taiwan.

Abstract

A suitable bone substitute is necessary in bone regenerative medicine. Hyaluronan (HA) has excellent biocompatibility and biodegradability and is widely used in tissue engineering. Additionally, research on fucoidan (Fu), a fucose- and sulfate-rich polysaccharide from brown seaweed, for the promotion of bone osteogenic differentiation has increased exponentially. In this study, HA and Fu were functionalized by grafting methacrylic groups onto the backbone of the chain. Methacrylate-hyaluronan (MHA) and methacrylate-fucoidan (MFu) were characterized by FTIR and ¹H NMR spectroscopy to confirm functionalization. The degrees of methacrylation (DMs) of MHA and MFu were 9.2% and 98.6%, respectively. Furthermore, we evaluated the mechanical properties of the hydrogels formed from mixtures of photo-crosslinkable MHA (1%) with varying concentrations of MFu (0%, 0.5%, and 1%). There were no changes in the hardness values of the hydrogels, but the elastic modulus decreased upon the addition of MFu, and these mechanical properties were not significantly different with or without preosteoblastic MG63 cell culture for up to 28 days. Furthermore, the cell morphologies and viabilities were not significantly different after culture with the MHA, MHA-MFu0.5, or MHA-MFu1.0 hydrogels, but the specific activity and mineralization of alkaline phosphatase (ALP) were significantly higher in the MHA-MFu1.0 hydrogel group compared to the other hydrogels. Hence, MHA-MFu composite hydrogels are potential bone graft materials that can provide a flexible structure and favorable niche for inducing bone osteogenic differentiation.

Keywords: fucoidan; hyaluronan; hydrogel; osteoblast.