Preparation of Conductive Hydrogel and Its Effect on the Proliferation of Neural Stem Cells

Abstract

Abstract Conductive hydrogels open up new possibilities for neural stem cells (NSCs) transplantation for the treatment of neurodegenerative diseases (NDs) and traumatic brain injury (TBI). In this study, a novel carboxymethyl chitosan/gelatin/poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) (CMCS/Gel-PEDOT) hydrogel with different contents of EDOT monomer was prepared by lyophilization and in-situ polymerization. The samples were characterized in terms of mechanical properties, in vitro biodegradation, swelling rate, and electrical conductivity. All the hydrogels exhibited excellent viscoelasticity, showing compression properties similar to those of rat brain tissue. Moreover, the conductive hydrogels exhibited a high swelling rate (2500%~3000%) in 60-85 h and adequate biodegradability within 6 weeks. With the increase of PEDOT content, the electrical conductivity of prepared hydrogel increased significantly, and the CMCS/Gel-0.2 EDOT hydrogel presented the highest conductivity (1.5×10−3 S/cm). In addition, compared to the suspension culture group and the group without PEDOT, NSCs seeded into the CMCS/Gel-0.2 EDOT hydrogel showed higher proliferative activity after 10 days of culturing, indicating that the conductive hydrogel may be a competitive choice for enhancing nerve regeneration in neural tissue engineering.