Electrospinning of methacrylated alginate for tissue engineering applications

Photo-crosslinkable methacrylated alginate derivatives (M-ALGs) were synthesized via modification of sodium alginate with glycidyl methacrylate. Needle (capillary) and needleless electrospinning techniques were employed to produce their nonwoven fiber mats. Spinning parameters such as applied voltage, solution composition, and flow rate were optimized to form uniform bead-free fibers with an average diameter of about 150 nm. The needleless technique allowed successful electrospinning of M-ALG solutions with wider ranges of viscosities and surface tensions owing to its higher applicable voltage (∼65 kV) compared to that of the needle technique (∼30 kV). Photo-crosslinking of the fibers via UV irradiation allowed the fiber mats to remain insoluble in physiological media while maintaining their mechanical properties. Cultivation of multipotent mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) with the cross-linked fiber mats in a modified Eagle medium (α-MEM) showed the growth of spherical colonies, indicating the sufficient cytocompatibility of the fiber mats with MSCs.