Short-term human chondrocyte culturing on oriented collagen coated gelatine scaffolds for cartilage replacement

Article type: Research Article

Authors: Zehbe, R.^; | Libera, J. | Gross, U. | Schubert, H.

Affiliations: TU Berlin, Institute of Material Science and Technologies, Englische Strasse 20, 10587 Berlin, Germany | co.don® AG, Molecular Medicine, Biotechnology, Tissue Engineering, Warthestrasse 21, 14513 Teltow, Germany | Charité University Medicine Berlin, Campus Benjamin Franklin, Laboratory of Biomaterials Research, Department of Experimental Dentistry / Oral Biology, Aßmannshauser Strasse 4-6, 14197 Berlin, Germany

Note: [] Corresponding author. Tel./Fax: +49 30 314 24072; E-mail: [email protected].

Abstract: The biological, biochemical, mechanical, and structural properties of artificial scaffolds for tissue engineering are known to be of great importance. Therefore, in this study a hydrogel derived scaffold with biomechanical and structural properties similar to native articular cartilage was synthesized. The gelatine-based hydrogel was processed by freeze-structuring, structuring by electrochemical water-decomposition, freeze-drying and chemical fixation resulting in a defined scaffold-structure. By electron microscopy a perpendicular pore-channel structure was verified with channel diameters between 30 μm and 70 μm. Mechanical testing showed mechanical properties similar to native cartilage. Human chondrocytes from biopsy samples were cultivated on these hydrogel scaffolds for three days. Two different cell densities (1.2×106 cells/cm3 and 12.0×106 cells/cm3) were used for cultivation. Histology of the cell seeded artificial scaffolds demonstrated vital cells that are widely distributed within the scaffold and mimic a columnar arrangement.

Keywords: Cartilage tissue engineering, chondrocyte, cross-linking, hydrogel, scaffold

Journal: Bio-Medical Materials and Engineering, vol. 15, no. 6, pp. 445-454, 2005