Effect of Purified Alginate Microcapsules on the Regeneration of Chondrocytes

Abstract

Adult articular cartilage tissue has poor capability of self-repair. Therefore, a variety of tissue engineering approaches are motivated by the clinical need for articular repair. Alginate has been used as a biomaterial for cartilage regeneration. The alginate is a natural polymer that is extracted from seaweeds and puri¯cation. However, the main drawback is the immune rejection in vivo. To overcome this problem, we have developed the biocompability of alginate using modi¯ed Korbutt method. After alginate was puri¯ed, puri¯ed alginate microcapsules were used in cartilage regeneration. Chondrocytes were seeded in puri¯ed and nonpuri¯ed alginate microcapsules, and then cell viability, proliferation and phenotype were analyzed by 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5 diphenyltetrazolium bromide (MTT) assay. Reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) was conducted to con¯rm mRNA expression on collagen type I and collagen type II for chondrocytes phenotype. Hematoxylin and eosin (H&E) and Safranin-O histological staining showed tissue growth at the interface during the¯rst 10 days. In this study, chondrocytes in puri¯ed alginate microcapsules had higher cell viability, proliferation and more phenotype expression than those in nonpuri¯ed alginate microcapsules. The results suggest that the puri¯ed alginate microcapsule is useful for cartilage regeneration.