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Lactobionic acid-functionalized polyethersulfone hollow fiber membranes promote HepG2 attachment and function.
Surendra Kumar Verma1, Akshay Modi1, Ashwin Dravid1
1Department of Chemical Engineering, Indian Institute of Technology Bombay Mumbai 400076 India jb@iitb.ac.in +91-22-2572-6895 +91-22-2576-7207.
RSC Advances
|May 11, 2022
Summary
Surface modification of polyethersulfone hollow fiber membranes with lactobionic acid enhances biocompatibility and hepatocyte function. This advancement is crucial for developing improved bio-artificial liver devices and bioreactors.
Area of Science:
- Biomaterials Science
- Tissue Engineering
- Regenerative Medicine
Background:
- Polyethersulfone hollow fiber membranes are vital for bio-artificial liver applications.
- Improving cell adhesion and function on these membranes is key for enhanced biocompatibility.
- Hepatocyte attachment relies on specific cell-surface interactions, like the galactose moiety with asialoglycoprotein receptors.
Purpose of the Study:
- To chemically modify polyethersulfone hollow fiber membranes by covalently coupling lactobionic acid.
- To evaluate the biocompatibility and cell function promotion of the modified membranes.
- To assess the potential of these modified membranes for bio-artificial liver applications.
Main Methods:
- Covalent coupling of lactobionic acid (LBA) to the outer surface of polyethersulfone (P) hollow fiber membranes (HFMs).
- Surface characterization using energy dispersive X-ray spectrometry, attenuated total reflectance-Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy.
- Assessment of hemocompatibility, biocompatibility with mesenchymal stem cells and HepG2 cells, and HepG2 cell functional activity (urea synthesis, albumin secretion, glucose consumption).
Main Results:
- Successful covalent coupling of LBA onto the P-HFMs was confirmed by surface analysis techniques.
- The modified membranes (P-LBA HFMs) demonstrated excellent hemocompatibility and significantly improved biocompatibility with human primary mesenchymal stem cells and HepG2 cells.
- HepG2 cells formed multi-cellular spheroids on the P-LBA HFMs, exhibiting enhanced functional activities including urea synthesis, albumin secretion, and glucose consumption.
Conclusions:
- Lactobionic acid modification of polyethersulfone hollow fiber membranes creates a highly biocompatible surface.
- The modified membranes effectively promote HepG2 cell attachment, proliferation, and functionality.
- These LBA-modified P-HFMs show significant potential for use in bioreactors and bio-artificial liver devices.
