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Lookup NU author(s): Dr Piergiorgio GentileORCiD
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (CC BY 4.0).
© 2019, The Author(s). Advanced therapies which combine cells with biomaterial-based carriers are recognized as an emerging and powerful method to treat challenging diseases, such as spinal cord injury (SCI). By enhancing transplanted cell survival and grafting, biomimetic hydrogels can be properly engineered to encapsulate cells and locate them at the injured site in a minimally invasive way. In this work, chitosan (CS) based hydrogels were developed to host mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs), since their paracrine action can therapeutically enhance the SC regeneration, limiting the formation of a glial scar and reducing cell death at the injured site. An injectable and highly permeable CS-based hydrogel was fabricated having a rapid gelation upon temperature increase from 0 to 37 °C. CS was selected as former material both for its high biocompatibility that guarantees the proper environment for MSCs survival and for its ability to provide anti-inflammatory and anti-oxidant cues. MSCs were mixed with the hydrogel solution prior to gelation. MSC viability was not affected by the CS hydrogel and encapsulated MSCs were able to release MSC-vesicles as well as to maintain their anti-oxidant features. Finally, preliminary in vivo tests on SCI mice revealed good handling of the CS solution loading MSCs during implantation and high encapsulated MSCs survival after 7 days.
Author(s): Boido M, Ghibaudi M, Gentile P, Favaro E, Fusaro R, Tonda-Turo C
Publication type: Article
Publication status: Published
Journal: Scientific Reports
Year: 2019
Volume: 9
Issue: 1
Online publication date: 25/04/2019
Acceptance date: 10/04/2019
Date deposited: 13/05/2019
ISSN (electronic): 2045-2322
Publisher: Nature Publishing Group
URL: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-019-42848-w
DOI: 10.1038/s41598-019-42848-w
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