ScholarWorks@성균관대학교

초록

Although cell-free shape-memory scaffolds (SMS) have shown potential for minimally invasive tissue regeneration, the fabrication of cell-laden SMSs remains a major challenge. This study proposes a cryopreservable cell-laden gelatin methacryloyl (GelMA)-based SMS fabricated via a cryogelation process using dimethyl sulfoxide as a cryoprotectant. This process enabled the cell-laden construct to achieve finely tunable porosity, rapid shape recovery, and high preservation of stem cell viability. To demonstrate the feasibility of SMSs as cell-laden constructs for tissue engineering applications, human adipose-derived stem cells are encapsulated within these scaffolds. Under cyclic compressive strain, these constructs effectively transmitted mechanical cues to the embedded cells, as evidenced by the upregulated expression of mechanotransduction-related genes, including WNT, PIEZO1, TRPV2, and YAP/TAZ. The fabrication strategy is further extended to extracellular matrix (ECM)-based composite bioinks, such as hASC-laden collagen/GelMA and decellularized ECM/GelMA formulations, both of which exhibited robust shape-memory properties while maintaining high cell viability. Collectively, these results demonstrate the potential of cell-laden SMSs in conjunction with tissue-specific mechanical stimulation as a promising platform for the development of injectable and efficacious constructs in regenerative tissue engineering.

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