Abstract

DEVELOPMENT AND CHARACTERIZATION OF CHITOSAN-ALGINATE SCAFFOLD AS POTENTIAL FOR WOUND HEALING

Abraão Ítalo de Lima dos Santos, Yuri José Albuquerque Silva, Lílian Maria Lapa Montenegro and Rosa Valéria da Silva Amorim*

ABSTRACT

The present work aims at the development and characterization of chitosan (Ch) and alginate (Alg) Scaffold (Scf) and demonstrates the effect of depolymerization on the Chitosan-based scaffold compared with the non-depolymerized form. Thus, medium molecular weight Ch was purified and depolymerized, mixed with Alg and then lyophilized to obtain functional Scf. Morphological analyses by Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM) were performed to estimate porosity and pore size; Physicochemical essays by Fourier-transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR) and swelling behaviour were made to evaluate the available functional groups of Scf and water uptake, respectively. The SEM showed a better porosity in the depolymerized form, the pore sizes evaluation displayed a range from 24 up to 298 μm, with a predominance at 160 μm, the images also shows the interconnectivity within the pores. The FTIR demonstrates that the depolymerization changes the spectrum of Ch and that there is an interaction between the two polymers, it also shows the presence of functional groups, important for cell attachment. The swelling behaviour demonstrated a higher water uptake capacity (4500 to 5000%) at acidic pH in comparison with the slightly alkaline pH of 7,2, 1000 to 2500%, in the Scf non-depolymerized and depolymerized, respectively. In conclusion, the proper porosity, pore size and swelling behaviour of dpCh-Alg Scf, proved its potential for further in vitro and in vivo studies, not only as wound healing in skin tissue, but could also be a potential matrix for the culture of many different kinds of eukaryotic cells, which could be a good tool in tissue engineering related to regeneration.

Keywords: Tissue engineering, Scaffold, Chitosan, Alginate, Wound healing.