Development of hybrid scaffolds with biodegradable hydrogels-delivering cells and drugs for bone tissue engineering

• Grant number: 24/16384-7
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships abroad - Research Internship - Post-doctor
• Start date: January 01, 2025
• End date: December 31, 2025
• Field of knowledge: Physical Sciences and Mathematics - Chemistry - Physical-Chemistry
• Principal Investigator: Ana Paula Ramos
• Grantee: Gildacio Pereira Chaves Filho
• Supervisor: Marco Andre Neves Domingos
• Host Institution: Faculdade de Filosofia, Ciências e Letras de Ribeirão Preto (FFCLRP). Universidade de São Paulo (USP). Ribeirão Preto , SP, Brazil
• Institution abroad: University of Manchester, England
• Associated to the scholarship: 23/07244-4 - Development of cells co-culture models to assess the effect of new strontium and flavonoids complexes with application in bone and cartilage regeneration, BP.PD

Abstract

The demographic displacement of population aging, and the appearance of chronic diseases can affect the regenerative capacities of bone tissue. These problems, coupled with the limitations of current clinical therapies, have triggered the search for alternative solutions based on the combination of biomaterials, cells and biomolecules, a strategy commonly termed Tissue Engineering (TE). The most recent trend in the field of bone TE comprises the fabrication of hybrid scaffolds via three-dimensional (3D) printing. Over the past two decades, rapid and innovative progression pointed to 3D printing as a promising bio-fabrication technique, including in the development of hybrid scaffolds for tissue mimicry and regeneration. Thus, the fabrication of an organic/inorganic porous matrix is a promising strategy in bone TE. Furthermore, embedding of bioactive molecules and mesenchymal stem cells through a matrix hydrogel onto scaffold structures is an attractive method to improve tissue regeneration through controlled delivery of cells and release of drugs to active cell differentiation and prevent inflammatory or bacterial infection processes. The use of complexes based on flavonoids (which already showed osteoinductive and anti-inflammatory effects) with strontium (which have beneficial effect on bone metabolism) could result in a potent molecule in the development of new therapies for activation of osteogenic differentiation and improving bone regeneration. However, despite recent progress, there is still a lack of polymeric hydrogels with tunable physical and chemical properties for the fabrication of 3D constructs capable of replicating the structural and functional organization of human bone tissues while delivering cells and biomolecules. Hence, the present proposal aims to address this challenge and deliver a 3D-hybrid scaffold comprising an inorganic porous matrix filled with biodegradable carrageenan-based hydrogel to replicate the native bone extracellular matrix whilst supporting physiologically relevant mechanical loads, delivering cells and molecules with potential to active bone formation.