Department of Biomechatronic Engineering, College of Biotechnology and Bioengineering, Sungkyunkwan University (SKKU), Suwon, South Korea.
Powder and Ceramics Division, Korea Institute of Materials Science (KIMS), Changwon, South Korea.
Sci Rep. 2017 Jun 9;7(1):3181. doi: 10.1038/s41598-017-03455-9.
Cell-laden scaffolds are widely investigated in tissue engineering because they can provide homogenous cell distribution after long culture periods, and deposit multiple types of cells into a designed region. However, producing a bioceramic 3D cell-laden scaffold is difficult because of the low processability of cell-loaded bioceramics. Therefore, designing a 3D bioceramic cell-laden scaffold is important for ceramic-based tissue regeneration. Here, we propose a new strategy to fabricate an alpha-tricalcium-phosphate (α-TCP)/collagen cell-laden scaffold, using preosteoblasts (MC3T3-E1), in which the volume fraction of the ceramic exceeded 70% and was fabricated using a two-step printing process. To fabricate a multi-layered cell-laden scaffold, we manipulated processing parameters, such as the diameter of the printing nozzle, pneumatic pressure, and volume fraction of α-TCP, to attain a stable processing region. A cell-laden pure collagen scaffold and an α-TCP/collagen scaffold loaded with cells via a simple dipping method were used as controls. Their pore geometry was similar to that of the experimental scaffold. Physical properties and bioactivities showed that the designed scaffold demonstrated significantly higher cellular activities, including metabolic activity and mineralization, compared with those of the controls. Our results indicate that the proposed cell-laden ceramic scaffold can potentially be used for bone regeneration.
细胞负载支架在组织工程中被广泛研究，因为它们可以在长时间培养后提供均匀的细胞分布，并将多种类型的细胞沉积到设计区域。然而，由于负载细胞的生物陶瓷的加工性能较低，因此生产生物陶瓷 3D 细胞负载支架具有一定的难度。因此，设计 3D 生物陶瓷细胞负载支架对于基于陶瓷的组织再生至关重要。在这里，我们提出了一种使用预成骨细胞（MC3T3-E1）制造α-磷酸三钙（α-TCP）/胶原细胞负载支架的新策略，其中陶瓷的体积分数超过 70%，并使用两步打印工艺制造。为了制造多层细胞负载支架，我们操纵了加工参数，如打印喷嘴的直径、气动压力和α-TCP 的体积分数，以达到稳定的加工区域。使用简单的浸渍法负载细胞的细胞负载纯胶原支架和α-TCP/胶原支架用作对照。它们的孔几何形状与实验支架相似。物理性能和生物活性表明，与对照相比，设计的支架表现出更高的细胞活性，包括代谢活性和矿化。我们的结果表明，所提出的细胞负载陶瓷支架有可能用于骨再生。
