Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jun 21, 2026
Alginate Encapsulation of Pluripotent Stem Cells Using a Co-axial Nozzle
Published on: July 2, 2015
Encapsulation of living cells in small ( approximately 100 microm) alginate microcapsules by electrostatic spraying:
1Department of Mechanical Engineering and Biomedical Engineering Program, University of South Carolina, 300 Main Street, Columbia, SC 29208, USA.
Abstract:
A parametric study was performed to understand the effect of preparation parameters on size, morphology, and encapsulation efficiency (i.e., cells/microcapsule) of alginate microcapsules prepared using the electrostatic spray method. The preparation parameters studied include sodium alginate concentration, spray voltage, flow rate, and cell density. It was found that both the flow rate and spray voltage have a significant impact on microcapsule size while the microcapsule morphology is greatly influenced by both the sodium alginate concentration and spray voltage. To obtain small ( approximately 100 mum) cell-loaded microcapsules with good morphology (i.e., round in shape and uniform in size) and high encapsulation efficiency (>5 cells/microcapsule), the optimal ranges of spray voltage, flow rate, alginate concentration, and cell density are from 1.6-1.8 kV, 1.5-3 ml/h, >1.5% (w/v), and (3-5)x10(6) cells/ml, respectively. Under optimal preparation conditions, cells were found to survive the microencapsulation process well.
