Culture of PC12 neuronal cells in GelMA hydrogel for brain tissue engineering

Restoration of brain functions following trauma or degenerative neural diseases is considered among the greatest challenges in neurology due to the fact that the central nervous system (CNS) does not regenerate on its own. Tissue engineering offers a potential solution in developing artificial neural/brain tissues. Numerous hydrogel based biomaterials have been investigated in the field of neural tissue engineering. However, the lack of the optimum combination of mechanical and biological properties in commonly available hydrogels represents a major bottle neck in growing artificial neural tissues. In this study, 3 dimensional cell culture of PC12 neuronal cells have been investigated in methacrylated Gelatin (GelMA) hydrogel for brain tissue engineering. The cell viability and propagation of PC12 neural cell lines on GelMA-based hydrogel was tested revealing its positive effects on these cells. In addition, cytotoxicity was assessed in vivo showing that implantation of GelMA did not show any acute neurotoxic effects in mice exposed to experimental brain injury.