In Situ Cell Electrospinning to Produce Cell-Laden Nanofiber Scaffolds for a Contactless Delivery Technology

Abstract

Tissue and organ defects caused by trauma, disease, and congenital malformations present significant clinical challenges. Traditional tissue engineering (TE) requires the preparation of scaffolds before cell seeding, which is not only timeconsuming but also causes poor cell infiltration and uneven distribution within the scaffold. Moreover, cells are prone to differentiation and contamination. Although 3D bioprinting and in situ TE can create scaffolds with spatially oriented cells, they still exhibit limitations in generating internal nanofiber structures. To address these challenges, we developed a hand-held in situ electrospinning device capable of constructing nanofiber scaffolds directly at sites. We further explored the effects of voltage, materials, and solvent on cell viability during the in situ cell electrospinning (IS-CE) process; completing cell encapsulation and delivery while preparing nanofibers in situ, the cell-laden nanofiber scaffolds were able to deliver highly active cells to the target sites. Additionally, IS-CE did not affect the cell stiffness and cell activity (such as proliferation, apoptosis, viability, etc.) of umbilical cord mesenchymal stem cells. RNA sequencing showed that IS-CE could alter the expression of multiple genes, enhancing cell adhesion and maintaining stem cell properties. This study achieved noncontact and highly active cell delivery, providing a technical and theoretical basis for the application of IS-CE in organ and tissue repair.