Department of Periodontology, School of Dentistry, Aichi Gakuin University, 2-11 Suemori-dori, Chikusa-ku, Nagoya, Aichi 464-8651, Japan.
Department of Dental Materials Science, School of Dentistry, Aichi Gakuin University, 1-100 Kusumoto-cho, Chikusa-ku, Nagoya, Aichi 464-8650, Japan.
Int J Mol Sci. 2021 Feb 6;22(4):1635. doi: 10.3390/ijms22041635.
Gelatin methacryloyl (GelMA) is a versatile biomaterial that has been used in various biomedical fields. UV light is commonly used to photocrosslink such materials; however, its use has raised several biosafety concerns. We investigated the mechanical and biological properties of a visible-wavelength (VW)-light-crosslinked gelatin-based hydrogel to evaluate its viability as a scaffold for bone regeneration in bone-destructive disease treatment. Irgacure2959 or riboflavin was added as a photoinitiator to create GelMA solutions. GelMA solutions were poured into a mold and exposed to either UV or VW light. KUSA-A1 cell-laden GelMA hydrogels were crosslinked and then cultured. Mechanical characterization revealed that the stiffness range of GelMA-RF hydrogel was suitable for osteoblast differentiation. KUSA-A1 cells encapsulated in GelMA hydrogels photopolymerized with VW light displayed significantly higher cell viability than cells encapsulated in hydrogels photopolymerized with UV light. We also show that the expression of osteogenesis-related genes at a late stage of osteoblast differentiation in osteoblasts encapsulated in GelMA-RF hydrogel was markedly increased under osteoblast differentiation-inducing conditions. The GelMA-RF hydrogel served as an excellent scaffold for the encapsulation of osteoblasts. GelMA-RF hydrogel-encapsulated osteoblasts have the potential not only to help regenerate bone mass but also to treat complex bone defects associated with bone-destructive diseases such as periodontitis.
明胶甲基丙烯酰（GelMA）是一种多功能生物材料，已在各种生物医学领域中使用。通常使用紫外光对这种材料进行光交联；然而，其使用引起了一些生物安全问题。我们研究了一种可见光（VW）光交联的基于明胶的水凝胶的机械和生物学特性，以评估其作为骨破坏性疾病治疗中骨再生支架的可行性。将 Irgacure2959 或核黄素作为光引发剂添加到 GelMA 溶液中。将 GelMA 溶液倒入模具中，并暴露于紫外光或 VW 光下。将负载 KUSA-A1 细胞的 GelMA 水凝胶交联，然后进行培养。机械特性分析表明，GelMA-RF 水凝胶的硬度范围适合成骨细胞分化。在成骨细胞分化诱导条件下，用 VW 光光聚合的 GelMA 水凝胶中包裹的 KUSA-A1 细胞的活力明显高于用紫外光光聚合的水凝胶中包裹的细胞。我们还表明，在成骨细胞分化诱导条件下，GelMA-RF 水凝胶中包裹的成骨细胞中与成骨相关的基因的表达在成骨细胞分化的后期阶段显著增加。GelMA-RF 水凝胶是一种极好的成骨细胞封装支架。GelMA-RF 水凝胶包封的成骨细胞不仅具有帮助再生骨量的潜力，而且还具有治疗与骨破坏性疾病（如牙周炎）相关的复杂骨缺损的潜力。
