3D bioprinted pectin-based hydrogel as sustainable biomaterials for musculoskeletal tissue engineering

Hao Chen Chang, Bodil Jørgensen, Lucy Di Silvio, Kasia Gurzawska-Comis*

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalJournal articleResearchpeer-review

3 Citations (Scopus)
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Abstract

Development of sustainable biomaterials are rapidly emerging as alternatives to fossil-based products. The new generation of eco-friendly “green” biomaterials manufactured using the latest advanced technologies in tissue engineering offers new possibilities for biomedical field in terms of drug delivery, therapeutics and damaged tissues repair. Musculoskeletal tissue has limited self-repair capacity, hence, there is an urgent need for effective treatment modalities to repair and prevent progression to chronic disease. More recently, cellular scaffolds are being considered as new therapeutic approaches for tissue engineering and 3D bioprinting tissues. Despite the success of using bioprinting techniques to create hierarchical constructs with uniformly dispersed cells, there is limited research on “green” bioactive components which can stimulate both osteogenesis and chondrogenesis simultaneously. Based on previous studies; pectin RG-I has been shown to have osteogenic and anti-inflammatory properties. This study focused on the fabrication of a pectin RG-I bioink for the incorporation of chondrocytes. The RG-I was extracted from agricultural side streams from the potato starch. Three different concentrations (0 μg/mL, 500 μg/mL, 700 μg/mL) of RG-I were evaluated. Human chondrocytes were incorporated within the bioinks and 3D bioprinted to create viable scaffolds. Physical properties were characterized by swelling and degradation studies. Cell response was assessed with proliferation, cell viability and morphology, and gene expression of galectin-3, collagen type-l, and collagen type- ll. All three groups of bioinks showed water intake and degradation ability as well as ideal printability and shape fidelity. Bioprinting did not cause any detrimental effect on cell-laden ink and cells were observed to be homogeneously dispersed. The formulation of 500 μg/mL pectin RG-I bioink showed the most promising properties for potential use to repair osteochondral defects due to its anti-inflammatory effect and fibrosis inhibition. The use of RG-I opens possibilities to manufacture multifunctional sustainable “green” biomaterials.

Original languageEnglish
Article numbere00732
JournalSustainable Materials and Technologies
Volume38
Number of pages12
ISSN2214-9937
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 2023

Bibliographical note

Publisher Copyright:
© 2023

Keywords

  • 3D bioprinting
  • Hydrogel
  • Osteochondral regeneration
  • Pectin
  • Sustainable biomaterials

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