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Updated: Oct 15, 2025
Preparation of Chitosan-based Injectable Hydrogels and Its Application in 3D Cell Culture
Published on: September 29, 2017
3D Printed Chitosan-Pectin Hydrogels: From Rheological Characterization to Scaffold Development and Assessment
Iratxe Zarandona1, Carlos Bengoechea2, Estefanía Álvarez-Castillo2
1BIOMAT Research Group, University of the Basque Country (UPV/EHU), Escuela de Ingeniería de Gipuzkoa, Plaza de Europa 1, 20018 Donostia-San Sebastián, Spain.
Abstract:
Chitosan-pectin hydrogels were prepared, and their rheological properties were assessed in order to select the best system to develop scaffolds by 3D printing. Hydrogels showed a weak gel behavior with shear thinning flow properties, caused by the physical interactions formed between both polysaccharides, as observed by FTIR analysis. Since systems with high concentration of pectin showed aggregations, the system composed of 2 wt% chitosan and 2 wt% pectin (CHI2PEC2) was selected for 3D printing. 3D printed scaffolds showed good shape accuracy, and SEM and XRD analyses revealed a homogeneous and amorphous structure. Moreover, scaffolds were stable and kept their shape and size after a cycle of compression sweeps. Their integrity was also maintained after immersion in PBS at 37 °C, showing a high swelling capacity, suitable for exudate absorption in wound healing applications.
