Production and in vitro evaluation of macroporous alginate hydrogel fibres for nerve tissue engineering

Abstract

The prospects for successful peripheral nerve repair using fibre guides are considered to be enhanced by use of a scaffold material which provides a good substrate for attachment and growth of glial cells and regenerating neurons. Alginate polymers exhibit a highly favourable balance of properties and exhibit the unique property of forming hydrogels under mild crosslinking conditions. As a result alginate has been widely applied for cell encapsulation. However the polysaccharide exhibits extremely poor cell adhesion properties, which limits its application for tissue regeneration.