Magnetically-guided manipulation of microfiber for fabrication of porous cell scaffold

Abstract

As one of the most promising substitutes for regenerative medicine, the pore cell scaffold attracts great attentions in tissue engineering recently. In this study, we apply microfiber to assemble this kind of porous structure based on magnetically-guided manipulation. The microfiber is fabricated by biocompatible and biodegradable alginate solution inside a microfluidic device. To feasibly manipulate the microfiber, homogeneous magnetic nanoparticles are encapsulated into the alginate solution to improve controllability. Simultaneously, an external magnetic force generated by a round permanent magnet is provided to attract the microfibers on a magnetized device composed by pure iron wire arrays and wax. To provide a bionic environment, the magnetized device has been fabricated to allow the generation of optimal pore structure with submillimeter size and high density. As preliminary results, we have achieved to fabricate a one-layer cell scaffold through magnetically-guided micromanipulation.