TY - JOUR
T1 - A newly developed chemically crosslinked dextran-poly(ethylene glycol) hydrogel for cartilage tissue engineering
AU - Jukes, Jojanneke M.
AU - Van Der Aa, Leonardus J.
AU - Hiemstra, Christine
AU - Van Veen, Theun
AU - Dijkstra, Pieter J.
AU - Zhong, Zhiyuan
AU - Feijen, Jan
AU - Van Blitterswijk, Clemens A.
AU - De Boer, Jan
PY - 2010/2/1
Y1 - 2010/2/1
N2 - Cartilage tissue engineering, in which chondrogenic cells are combined with a scaffold, is a cell-based approach to regenerate damaged cartilage. Various scaffold materials have been investigated, among which are hydrogels. Previously, we have developed dextran-based hydrogels that form under physiological conditions via a Michael-type addition reaction. Hydrogels can be formed in situ by mixing a thiol-functionalized dextran with a tetra-acrylated star poly(ethylene glycol) solution. In this article we describe how the degradation time of dextran-poly(ethylene glycol) hydrogels can be varied from 3 to 7 weeks by changing the degree of substitution of thiol groups on dextran. The degradation times increased slightly after encapsulation of chondrocytes in the gels. The effect of the gelation reaction on cell viability and cartilage formation in the hydrogels was investigated. Chondrocytes or embryonic stem cells were mixed in the aqueous dextran solution, and we confirmed that the cells survived gelation. After a 3-week culturing period, chondrocytes and embryonic stem cell-derived embryoid bodies were still viable and both cell types produced cartilaginous tissue. Our data demonstrate the potential of dextran hydrogels for cartilage tissue engineering strategies.
AB - Cartilage tissue engineering, in which chondrogenic cells are combined with a scaffold, is a cell-based approach to regenerate damaged cartilage. Various scaffold materials have been investigated, among which are hydrogels. Previously, we have developed dextran-based hydrogels that form under physiological conditions via a Michael-type addition reaction. Hydrogels can be formed in situ by mixing a thiol-functionalized dextran with a tetra-acrylated star poly(ethylene glycol) solution. In this article we describe how the degradation time of dextran-poly(ethylene glycol) hydrogels can be varied from 3 to 7 weeks by changing the degree of substitution of thiol groups on dextran. The degradation times increased slightly after encapsulation of chondrocytes in the gels. The effect of the gelation reaction on cell viability and cartilage formation in the hydrogels was investigated. Chondrocytes or embryonic stem cells were mixed in the aqueous dextran solution, and we confirmed that the cells survived gelation. After a 3-week culturing period, chondrocytes and embryonic stem cell-derived embryoid bodies were still viable and both cell types produced cartilaginous tissue. Our data demonstrate the potential of dextran hydrogels for cartilage tissue engineering strategies.
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=77049105846&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1089/ten.tea.2009.0173
DO - 10.1089/ten.tea.2009.0173
M3 - Article
C2 - 19737051
AN - SCOPUS:77049105846
SN - 1937-3341
VL - 16
SP - 565
EP - 573
JO - Tissue engineering. Part A
JF - Tissue engineering. Part A
IS - 2
ER -