Effects of Encapsulated Cells on the Physical–Mechanical Properties and Microstructure of Gelatin Methacrylate Hydrogels

Abstract

Gelatin methacrylate (GelMA) has been gaining popularity in recent years as a photo-crosslinkable biomaterial widely used in a variety of bioprinting and tissue engineering applications. Several studies have established the effects of process-based and material-based parameters on the physical−mechanical properties and microstructure of GelMA hydrogels. However, the effect of encapsulated cells on the physical−mechanical properties and microstructure of GelMA hydrogels has not been fully understood. In this study, 3T3 fibroblasts were encapsulated at different cell densities within the GelMA hydrogels and incubated over 96 h. The effects of encapsulated cells were investigated in terms of mechanical properties (tensile modulus and strength), physical properties (swelling and degradation), and microstructure (pore size). Cell viability was also evaluated to confirm that most cells were alive during the incubation. It was found that with an increase in cell density, the mechanical properties decreased, while the degradation and the pore size increased.

Keywords

• gelatin methacrylate (gelma)
• encapsulated cells
• physical–mechanical properties
• microstructure
• tissue engineering