Abstract
Gelatin methacryloyl (GelMA) hydrogel is a photopolymerizable biomaterial widely used for three-dimensional (3D) cell culture due to its high biocompatibility. However, the drawback of GelMA hydrogel is its poor mechanical properties, which may compromise the feasibility of biofabrication techniques. In this study, a cell-laden GelMA composite hydrogel with a combination incorporating silanized hydroxyapatite (Si-HAp) and a simple and harmless visible light crosslinking system for this hydrogel were developed. The incorporation of Si-HAp into the GelMA hydrogel enhanced the mechanical properties of the composite hydrogel. Moreover, the composite hydrogel exhibited low cytotoxicity and promoted the osteogenic gene expression of embedded MG63 cells and Human bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells (hBMSCs). We also established a maskless lithographic method to fabricate a defined 3D structure under visible light by using a digital light processing projector, and the incorporation of Si-HAp increased the resolution of photolithographic hydrogels. The GelMA-Si-HAp composite hydrogel system can serve as an effective biomaterial in bone regeneration.
Highlights
Bone tissue engineering aims to restore damaged bone by using a combination of cells, biomaterials, and growth factors [1,2]
We developed a visible light curing system by a commercial Digital light processing (DLP)-based projector to micro-fabricate these composite hydrogels into complex architecture
The results indicated that GelMA-silanized HAp (Si-HAp) had greater effects on osteogenic differentiation in MG63 cells than in Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs)
Summary
Bone tissue engineering aims to restore damaged bone by using a combination of cells, biomaterials, and growth factors [1,2]. Gelatin is a biocompatible and biodegradable collagen-derived hydrogel that provides the three-dimensional (3D) microenvironment to support cell proliferation and differentiation [4,5]. It exhibits greater solubility and less antigenicity than collagen [6]. The limitation of the gelatin hydrogel is its instability at body temperature [7,8]. To increase the potential of bone tissue engineering, an optimal hydrogel system should be able to regulate the material properties and encapsulate pro-osteogenic substances [13]. To mimic the in vivo microenvironment, selecting natural inorganic substances from human bone as a reinforcing filler may be a suitable strategy to strengthen GelMA hydrogels
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