Multi-featured macroporous agarose-alginate cryogel: synthesis and characterization for bioengineering applications

In this study agarose-alginate scaffolds are synthesized using cryogelation technology in different formats like monolith, sheet, discs, and beads, and show amiable mechanical strength like soft tissue properties and high interconnected macroporous degradable architecture. In cell-material interactions, fibroblast (NIH-3T3) cells showed good adherence and proliferation on these scaffolds presenting its potential application in soft tissue engineering. The application of cryogel beads and monoliths was also examined by the efficient immobilization of bacterial cells (BL21) on these matrices revealing their use for recovery of product from continuous fermentation systems without cell leakage. These scaffolds also showed potential as a filter for repeated recovery of heavy metal binding, such as copper and nickel from the waste water. The cryogels prepared herein do have a number of unique features that make them an important class of soft materials for developing multi-featured scaffolds as a novel carrier for bioengineering applications.