title: Hydrogels based on poly(ethylene glycol) as scaffolds for tissue engineering application: biocompatibility assessment and effect of the sterilization process.
abstract: Hydrogels are suitable materials to promote cell proliferation and tissue support because of their hydrophilic nature, porous structure and sticky properties. However, hydrogel synthesis involves the addition of additives that can increase the risk of inducing cytotoxicity. Sterilization is a critical process for hydrogel clinical use as a proper scaffold for tissue engineering. In this study, poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG), poly(ethylene glycol)-chitosan (PEG-CH) and multi-arm PEG hydrogels were synthesized by free radical polymerization and sterilized by gamma irradiation or disinfected using 70 % ethanol. The biocompatibility assessment in human fibroblasts and hemocompatibility studies (hemolysis, platelet aggregation, morphology of mononuclear cells and viability) in peripheral blood from healthy volunteers (ex vivo), were performed. The sterilization or disinfection effect on hydrogel structures was evaluated by FT-IR spectroscopy. Results indicated that hydrogels do not induce any damage to fibroblasts, erythrocytes, platelets or mononuclear cells. Moreover, there was no significant difference in the biocompatibility after the sterilization or disinfection treatment. However, after gamma irradiation, several IR spectroscopic bands were shifted to higher or lower energies with different intensity in all hydrogels. In particular, several bands associated to carboxyl or hydroxyl groups were slightly shifted, possibly associated to scission reactions. The disinfection treatment (70 % ethanol) and γ-irradiation at 13.83 ± 0.7 kGy did not induce morphological damages and yielded sterile and biocompatible PEG hydrogels potentially useful for clinical applications.
authors.affiliation: Laboratorio de Biología Molecular y Celular, Centro de Investigación en Ciencias Médicas, Universidad Autónoma del Estado de México, Jesús Carranza 200, Toluca, Estado de México, 50130, Mexico.|Facultad de Medicina, Universidad Autónoma del Estado de México, 50180, Toluca, Mexico.|Instituto Nacional de Investigaciones Nucleares, Estado de México, Ocoyoacac, 52750, Mexico.
authors.forename: Alondra
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Escudero-Castellanos
authors.affiliation: Instituto Nacional de Investigaciones Nucleares, Estado de México, Ocoyoacac, 52750, Mexico.
authors.forename: Blanca E
authors.initials: BE
authors.lastname: Ocampo-García
authors.affiliation: Laboratorio de Biología Molecular y Celular, Centro de Investigación en Ciencias Médicas, Universidad Autónoma del Estado de México, Jesús Carranza 200, Toluca, Estado de México, 50130, Mexico.
authors.forename: Ma Victoria
authors.initials: MV
authors.lastname: Domínguez-García
authors.affiliation: Facultad de Química, Universidad Autónoma del Estado de México, 50180, Toluca, Mexico.
authors.forename: Jaime
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Flores-Estrada
authors.affiliation: Laboratorio de Biología Molecular y Celular, Centro de Investigación en Ciencias Médicas, Universidad Autónoma del Estado de México, Jesús Carranza 200, Toluca, Estado de México, 50130, Mexico. mvfloresm@uaemex.mx.
authors.forename: Miriam V
authors.initials: MV
authors.lastname: Flores-Merino
mesh_terms: D001672:Biocompatible Materials / Q000737:chemistry*; D049109:Cell Proliferation; D002478:Cells, Cultured; D048271:Chitosan / Q000737:chemistry; D000431:Ethanol / Q000737:chemistry; D005347:Fibroblasts / Q000378:metabolism; D005720:Gamma Rays; D006801:Humans; D020100:Hydrogels / Q000737:chemistry; D010974:Platelet Aggregation; D011092:Polyethylene Glycols / Q000737:chemistry*; D017550:Spectroscopy, Fourier Transform Infrared; D023822:Tissue Engineering / Q000379:methods*; D054457:Tissue Scaffolds
chemical_list: D001672:Biocompatible Materials; D020100:Hydrogels; C118638:glycol-chitosan; D000431:Ethanol; D011092:Polyethylene Glycols; D048271:Chitosan