Bioplotting of a bioactive alginate dialdehyde-gelatin composite hydrogel containing bioactive glass nanoparticles

Alginate dialdehyde-gelatin (ADA-GEL) constructs incorporating bioactive glass nanoparticles (BGNPs) were produced by biofabrication to obtain a grid-like highly-hydrated composite. The material could induce the deposition of an apatite layer upon immersion in a biological-like environment to sustain cell attachment and proliferation. Composites were formulated with different concentrations of BGNPs synthetized from a sol-gel route, namely 0.1% and 0.5% (w/v). Strontium doped BGNPs were also used. EDS analysis suggested that the BGNPs loading promoted the growth of bone-like apatite layer on the surface when the constructs were immersed in a simulated body fluid. Moreover, the composite constructs could incorporate with high efficiency ibuprofen as a drug model. Furthermore, the biofabrication process allowed the successful incorporation of MG-63 cells into the composite material. Cells were distributed homogeneously within the hydrogel composite, and no differences were found in cell viability between ADA-GEL and the composite constructs, proving that the addition of BGNPs did not influence cell fate. Overall, the composite material showed potential for future applications in bone tissue engineering.