Culture and meniscal chondrocytes on alginate hydrogel matrices

Alginate hydrogels, crosslinked ionically (with calcium ions) and covalently (with 1-ethyl-3-dimethylaminopropyl-Al-hydroxysuccinimide carbodiiamide) have been investigated for their suitability as scaffolds for meniscal chondrocyte cell culture. Ovine meniscal chondrocytes were encapsulated at 2.6 +/- 0.6 x 10(6) cells/ml in 1-2% w/v alginate beads and were also seeded onto the surface of flat alginate hydrogels. Alginate beads were cultured in stirred or static environments on DMEM media with 10% serum. The alginate beads supported cell growth for over 50 days, however, cell numbers and viability in the alginate beads were found to decrease over time, with a greater retention of cell viability in the stirred flask culture. When cultured on flat alginate gels, it was found that a much greater cell count was achieved on gels which had been pre-conditioned with culture media containing chondrocytes as compared with soaking in media alone. Covalently crosslinked gels were found to disintegrate over a 3 day period, and were generally unsuitable for supporting meniscal chondrocyte growth.