Injectable porcine bone demineralized and digested extracellular matrix-PEGDA hydrogel blend for bone regeneration

Area of Science:

• Biomaterials Science
• Tissue Engineering
• Regenerative Medicine

Background:

• Extracellular matrix (ECM) provides structural support and regulates cellular functions in tissues.
• ECM-derived proteins are utilized in fabricating scaffolds for tissue engineering.
• Limitations of natural polymers include poor structural stability and rapid degradation.

Purpose of the Study:

• To extract, characterize, and fabricate a novel hydrogel from pig bone ECM proteins.
• To combine ECM proteins with a synthetic polymer for enhanced bone regeneration applications.
• To create an injectable scaffold with improved physicochemical and biological properties.

Main Methods:

• Extraction and optimization of porcine bone demineralized and digested extracellular matrix (pddECM) rich in collagen type I.
• Sterilization of pddECM using high-pressurized CO2.
• Blending pddECM with 20% w/v polyethylene glycol diacrylate (PEGDA) to form an injectable semi-interpenetrating polymer network (SIPN) scaffold.

Main Results:

• The pddECM-PEGDA hydrogel demonstrated excellent structural stability, retaining over 90% integrity after 30 days of incubation.
• The injectable hydrogel exhibited high cytocompatibility with human osteoblast (hOb) and SaOs-2 cells.
• Significant osteogenic proliferation was observed within 21 days of culture, with favorable mechanical properties (520 kPa compression modulus) and low swelling (5.3 mg/mg).

Conclusions:

• The developed injectable pddECM-PEGDA hydrogel overcomes the limitations of natural polymers, offering enhanced structural stability and endurance.
• The hydrogel promotes osteogenic proliferation, indicating its potential for bone regeneration applications.
• The favorable physicochemical and biological properties make this novel biomaterial a promising candidate for bone defect repair.