Abstract
Carbon-based nanomaterials, such as graphene oxide (GO) or carbon nanotubes (CNTs) are currently used in various medical applications due to their positive influence on biocompatibility, adhesion, proliferation, and differentiation, as well as their contribution to modulating cell behavior in response to nanomaterial substrates. In this context, in this study, novel flexible membranes based on cellulose acetate (CA) enriched with CNT and GO in different percentages were tested for their versatility to be used as substrates for soft or hard tissue engineering (TE), namely, for their ability to support human adipose-derived stem cells (hASCs) adhesion during adipogenic or osteogenic differentiation. For this purpose, differentiation markers were assessed both at gene and protein levels, while histological staining was performed to show the evolution of the processes in response to CA-CNT-GO substrates. Micro-CT analysis indicated porous morphologies with open and interconnected voids. A slightly lower total porosity was obtained for the samples filled with the highest amount of GO and CNTs, but thicker walls, larger and more uniform pores were obtained, providing beneficial effects on cell behavior and increased mechanical stability. The addition of 1 wt% GO and CNT to the biocomposites enhanced hASCs adhesion and cytoskeleton formation. The evolution of both adipogenic and osteogenic differentiation processes was found to be augmented proportionally to the GO-CNT concentration. In conclusion, CA-CNT-GO biomaterials displayed good properties and versatility as platforms for cell differentiation with potential as future implantable materials in TE applications.
Highlights
Graphene (G), graphene oxide (GO), and carbon nanotube (CNT) are carbon-based nanomaterials with remarkable mechanical and physicochemical properties with the possibility of good biocompatibility
We tested, for the first time, bidimensional biomaterials based on cellulose acetate (CA) enriched with a combination of 0.25–1 wt% GO and CNTs for their ability to support interaction with cellular components and for their versatility as substitutes in different tissue engineering applications
The purpose of this research was to prove that a fine control of the application can be provided by modulating the combination of two carbon derivatives, CNTs and GO, in order to obtain the appropriate porosity and parameters for reconstruction of either soft or hard tissues
Summary
Graphene (G), graphene oxide (GO), and carbon nanotube (CNT) are carbon-based nanomaterials with remarkable mechanical and physicochemical properties with the possibility of good biocompatibility. It is generally accepted that substrates coated with these nanomaterials are able to modulate the behavior of cells seeded on their surface due to the similar properties they offer in the natural extracellular matrix (ECM) [1,2,3,4,5]. Adipogenesis, osteogenesis, chondrogenesis, and neurogenesis are just some of the differentiation processes that were studied in the presence of graphene derivatives. The use of G and GO was found to be the most effective for adipogenesis and osteogenesis, facilitating both the absorption of differentiation factors and cell adhesion [8,9,10,11]. Lee et al reported that G promotes osteogenesis in human mesenchymal stem cells (hMSCs), while GO has high affinity for insulin and facilitates adipogenesis [4]. Suhito et al found that GO-coated substrates better promoted osteogenesis than adipogenesis of hASC [13]
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