压电响应性水凝胶促进大鼠髓核细胞基质合成OA

Objective To investigate the property of fundamental material properties of a piezoelectic-responsive hy-drogel(KNN/GelMA),including its mechanical,piezoelectric and biocompatibility characteristics,and to examine the effects of its piezoelectric response the synthetic metabolism of nucleus pulposus cells(NPCs).Methods 1)Material characterisation:KNN was uniformly dispersed in GelMA hydrogel via ultrasonication to pre-pare a photopolymerisable,degradable piezoelectric hydrogel.Preliminary physicochemical characterisation was conducted by measuring microstructure,piezoelectric properties and so on.2)Cellular experiments:The piezo-electic-responsive hydrogel was co-incubated with rat primary NPCs.The proliferation capacity and biocompatibility were assessed using the CCK-8 methods and a dead/live staining kit.Gene expression related to extra cellular ma-trix synthesis was detected by RT-qPCR.Results The material surface exhibited a uniform pore structure,with KNN nanoparticles distributed evenly throughout the hydrogel.Piezoelectric output experiments demonstrated signif-icant voltage and current generation under applied force(P＜0.05).The proliferation of cells in the 0.4%w/v KNN/GelMA group was significantly enhanced over time as compared with that in 0.2%w/v KNN/GelMA group,and live cells(green)were dominant(P＜0.05).RT-qPCR showed that the mRNA levels of related aggrecan(Acan)and type Ⅱ collagen(Col2)in the extra cellular matrix of chondrocytes in the TNF-α+KNN/GelMA+ultrasound(US)group was lower than those in the TNF-α+KNN/GelM group(P＜0.05).Conclusions A light-curable,degradable,piezoelectric-responsive hydrogel which exhibits a uniform porous structure has developed.It has a significant piezoelectric effect,excellent biocompatibility,and can significantly promote the cell matrix syn-thesis ability of nucleus pulposus cells.It is a promising material option for repairing degenerative disc injuries.