Hydrogels as scaffolds for stem cell therapy with focus on cartilage
Typ
Examensarbete för masterexamen
Master's Thesis
Master's Thesis
Program
Biotechnology (MPBIO), MSc
Publicerad
2023
Författare
Forsell, Oliver
Modellbyggare
Tidskriftstitel
ISSN
Volymtitel
Utgivare
Sammanfattning
Osteoarthritis, a disease arising from degradation of articular cartilage in joints, presents
a major cost for the healthcare system and is a leading reason behind work disability.
Conventional therapies are temporary fixes with limited applications and an inability
to fully restore the damaged tissue. In recent years, cell therapy has emerged as
an alternative and regenerative cartilage therapy. Challenges remain in developing
proper scaffolds which serve the purpose of protecting the cells and preventing migration
while providing the right mechanical and biochemical signals ensuring high cell
viability, proper differentiation and phenotype maintenance. In this study, hydrogel
scaffolds were formulated with the objective to achieve both sufficient biochemical
and mechanical properties by attempting to create an interpenetrating network (IPN)
of polymers forming physical and covalent crosslinks. To determine whether an IPN
could be obtained, gels with a variety of crosslinking degrees and polymer concentrations
were formulated using a Box-Behnken design of experiments. The gelation
kinetics were investigated using a rheometer and molded gels were mechanically tested
with a universal testing machine as well as structurally characterized by fluorescent
microscopy. A positive synergistic effect was observed with respect to the torsional
elasticity but not for unconfined axial compression. Microstructure analysis revealed
impact of polymer type and concentration on dispersion quality.
Beskrivning
Ämne/nyckelord
Hydrogels , crosslinking , osteoarthritis , cartilage , cell-therapy , rheology , microscopy