Nano-Fibrous Biopolymer Hydrogels via Biological Conjugation for Osteogenesis

Nanostructured biopolymer hydrogels have great potential in the field of drug delivery and regenerative medicine. In this work, a nano-fibrous (NF) biopolymer hydrogel was developed for cell growth factors (GFs) delivery and in vitro osteogenesis. The nano-fibrous hydrogel was produced via biological conjugation of streptavidin functionalized hyaluronic acid (HA-Streptavidin) and biotin terminated star-shaped poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG-Biotin). In the present work, in vitro gelation, mechanical properties, degradation and equilibrium swelling of the NF hydrogel were examined. The potential application of this NF gel scaffold in bone tissue engineering was confirmed by encapsulation behavior of osteoblasts. Osteoblasts seeded directly in NF gel scaffold containing cell growth factor, e.g. bone morphogenetic protein 2 (BMP-2), was to mimic the in vivo microenvironment in which cells interface biomaterials and interact with BMP-2. In combination with BMP-2, the NF hydrogel exhibited beneficial effects on osteoblast activity and differentiation, which suggested a promising future for local treatment of pathologies involving bone loss.