Hydrogel matrices based on elastin and alginate for tissue engineering applications

Raquel Silva; Raminder Singh; Bapi Sarker; Dimitrios G Papageorgiou; Judith A Juhasz-Bortuzzo; Judith A Roether; Iwona Cicha; Joachim Kaschta; Dirk W Schubert; Konstantinos Chrissafis; Rainer Detsch; Aldo R Boccaccini

doi:10.1016/j.ijbiomac.2018.03.091

Hydrogel matrices based on elastin and alginate for tissue engineering applications

Int J Biol Macromol. 2018 Jul 15:114:614-625. doi: 10.1016/j.ijbiomac.2018.03.091. Epub 2018 Mar 20.

Affiliations

¹ Institute of Briomaterials, Department of Materials Science and Engineering, University of Erlangen-Nuremberg, 91058 Erlangen, Germany. Electronic address: raqueljms.silva@gmail.com.
² Cardiovascular Nanomedicine Unit, Section of Experimental Oncology and Nanomedicine, ENT Department, University Hospital Erlangen, 91054 Erlangen, Germany; Laboratory of Molecular Cardiology, Medical Clinic 2, University Hospital Erlangen, 91054 Erlangen, Germany.
³ Institute of Briomaterials, Department of Materials Science and Engineering, University of Erlangen-Nuremberg, 91058 Erlangen, Germany.
⁴ Solid State Physics Section, Physics Department, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, 541 24 Thessaloniki, Greece; School of Materials and National Graphene Institute, University of Manchester, Oxford Road, M13 9PL Manchester, United Kingdom.
⁵ Institute for Polymer Materials, Department of Materials Science and Engineering, University of Erlangen-Nuremberg, 91058 Erlangen, Germany.
⁶ Cardiovascular Nanomedicine Unit, Section of Experimental Oncology and Nanomedicine, ENT Department, University Hospital Erlangen, 91054 Erlangen, Germany.
⁷ Solid State Physics Section, Physics Department, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, 541 24 Thessaloniki, Greece.
⁸ Institute of Briomaterials, Department of Materials Science and Engineering, University of Erlangen-Nuremberg, 91058 Erlangen, Germany. Electronic address: aldo.boccaccini@ww.uni-erlangen.de.

PMID: 29572141
DOI: 10.1016/j.ijbiomac.2018.03.091

Abstract

Hydrogels from natural polymers are widely used in tissue engineering due to their unique properties, especially when regarding the cell environment and their morphological similarity to the extracellular matrix (ECM) of native tissues. In this study, we describe the production and characterization of novel hybrid hydrogels composed of alginate blended with elastin from bovine neck ligament. The properties of elastin as a component of the native ECM were combined with the excellent chemical and mechanical stability as well as biocompatibility of alginate to produce two hybrid hydrogels geometries, namely 2D films obtained using sonication treatment and 3D microcapsules produced by pressure-driven extrusion. The resulting blend hydrogels were submitted to an extensive physico-chemical characterization. Furthermore, the biological compatibility of these materials was assessed using normal human dermal fibroblasts, indicating the suitability of this blend for soft tissue engineering.

Keywords: Alginate; Elastin; Hybrid hydrogels; Soft matrices; Tissue engineering.

MeSH terms

Alginates* / chemistry
Alginates* / pharmacology
Animals
Cattle
Dermis / cytology
Dermis / metabolism*
Elastin* / chemistry
Elastin* / pharmacology
Fibroblasts / cytology
Fibroblasts / metabolism*
Glucuronic Acid / chemistry
Glucuronic Acid / pharmacology
Hexuronic Acids / chemistry
Hexuronic Acids / pharmacology
Humans
Hydrogels* / chemistry
Hydrogels* / pharmacology
Materials Testing*
Tissue Engineering*

Substances

Alginates
Hexuronic Acids
Hydrogels
Glucuronic Acid
Elastin