Funding from the BBSRC is kindly acknowledged (grant number BB H011293/1).

Overview
Section 1 describes the preparation of pH responsive nanosensors and characterization of nanosensor response to pH using fluorescence spectrometry and their size using SEM.
Section 2 describes the preparation of electrospun polymer scaffolds and characterization of their morphology and size using SEM. Section 2 also describes the preparation of self-reporting scaffolds which are electrospun scaffolds with the inclusion of the pH responsive nanosensors. The res...

<ol>
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Tissue engineering aspires to create biological substitutes that can be used both as in vivo like in vitro tissue models and in tissue replacement therapy to repair, replace, maintain or enhance the function of a particular tissue or organ. Synthetic substitutes have been used for many years to replace or aid repair of tissues but these often fail due to poor integration with the host tissue and/or infection, which ultimately leads to rejection or further revision surgery. Generating living tissue in th...

A key strategy in tissue engineering is the use of biocompatible materials to fabricate scaffolds whose morphology resembles the tissue that it is going to replace and is also capable of supporting cell growth and function1,2. The scaffold provides mechanical support by allowing cell attachment and proliferation yet allows cell migration throughout the interstices of a 3D cellular construct. The scaffold must also allow for the mass transport of cell nutrients and not inhibit removal of metabolic waste3.
Electrospinning has emerged as a promising method for the fabrication of polymeric scaffolds capable of supporting cellular growth4-6. The nonwoven electrospun fibers produced are suitable for cell growth as they are often porous and allow cell-cell interaction as well as cell migration throughout the interstices of a 3D cellular construct7. It is important to monitor cell viability during the period of culture and to ensure that cell viability is maintained throughout the whole of the 3D construct. For example, culture conditions such as oxygen and pH require careful control, as gradients in analyte concentration can exist within the 3D construct. Bioreactors or perfusion systems can be employed to mimic in&#160;vivo conditions of interstitial flow and as a result increase nutrient transfer and metabolic waste removal8. The question of whether such systems are ensuring constant microenvironmental conditions can be addressed by assessing the cellular microenvironment in real-time.
Key microenvironment metrics that could be monitored in real-time include: temperature, chemical composition of cell media, concentration of dissolved oxygen and carbon dioxide, pH, and humidity. Of these metrics, temperature can be most readily monitored using in situ probes. Methods for monitoring the remaining listed metrics commonly involve removal of an aliquot for sampling and therefore disturb the cell culture and increase the contamination risk. Continuous, real-time methods are being sought. Current monitoring methods usually rely upon instruments that physically probe the cellular construct such as a pH monitor or oxygen probe. However, these intrusive methods can damage the cellular construct and disturb the ongoing experiment. Noninvasive monitoring of analyte concentrations within the 3D construct could enable real-time monitoring of various environmental aspects such as nutrient depletion9. This would allow assessment of nutrient supply to deeper regions within the structure and determine whether metabolic waste was being removed effectively10,11. Systems that attempt to address the issue of invasiveness generally involve the use of a perfusion chamber that passes culture medium through both the culture vessel and to external sensors to monitor pH, oxygen and glucose12. There is increasing interest in developing sensors that can be directly integrated into the culture vessel that do not require removal of an aliquot for sampling and as such would provide in&#160;situ monitoring.
To address such shortcomings for in&#160;situ and noninvasive monitoring of microenvironmental conditions we have incorporated analyte responsive nanosensors into electrospun scaffolds to produce self-reporting scaffolds13. Scaffolds that act as sensing devices by monitoring fluorescence activity have been prepared previously, where the sensing device was either the actual polymeric scaffold created by electrospinning or through the use of an analyte responsive dye which is incorporated into the polymer prior to scaffold formation14,15. However, these sensing devices have the potential to give erroneous optical outputs caused by possible interference from other analytes. The use of a ratiometric sensing device such as those prepared in the described protocol holds the potential to eliminate these possible adverse effects and provide a response specific to the analyte in question.
The electrospun scaffolds presented here have been prepared from the synthetic co-polymer poly(lactic-co-glycolic acid) (PLGA), selected due to having Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval, owing to its biodegradable and biocompatible properties and a track record of supporting the growth and function of various cell types16-18. The prepared ratiometric analyte responsive nanosensors are responsive to pH. The nanosensors incorporate two fluorescent dyes into a biocompatible sol-gel matrix where one dye, FAM is responsive to pH and the other, TAMRA acts as an internal standard as it is not responsive to pH. Furthermore the fluorescence of both FAM and TAMRA can be analyzed separately as they do not significantly overlap. Determining the ratio of the fluorescence emission of both dyes at specific wavelengths gives a pH response independent of other environmental conditions. The self-reporting scaffolds could allow repeat assessment of pH in situ and in real-time without disrupting the developed 3D model. We have demonstrated that these scaffolds are capable of supporting cell attachment and proliferation and remain responsive to the analyte in question. The kinetics of acidic by-products in engineered constructs remains understudied and as such using the pH responsive scaffolds could greatly facilitate such studies19. Furthermore, the use of the self-reporting scaffolds for tissue engineering applications presents the opportunity to fully understand, monitor and optimize the growth of 3D model tissue constructs in vitro, noninvasively and in real-time.
The pH responsive nanosensors have also been delivered to the intracellular environment of fibroblasts cultured upon electrospun PLGA scaffolds. The ratio of the fluorescence emission from the dyes were used to monitor pHi and compared to a self-reporting scaffold incorporating pH nanosensors. The delivery of nanosensors to cells cultured in a 3D environment could enable monitoring of analyte concentration deep within the construct in a nondestructive manner. Therefore nanosensors may be a viable imaging tool to nondestructively assess cell behavior throughout 3D constructs allowing long-term analysis. Screening the analyte concentration of individual cells within a 3D construct could ensure that they are receiving sufficient nutrient and oxygen concentrations. Monitoring process parameters could assist in the development of standardized techniques for the effective mass transport of oxygen and nutrients. The delivery of nanosensors to the intracellular environment and incorporation of nanosensors into polymeric scaffolds could be combined to allow assessment of cell viability as well as scaffold performance within 3D constructs during the tissue growth process. This may lead to increased knowledge of these constructs and progress the fabrication of biologically relevant tissue substitutes.

<table border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" width="481">
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		<col />
		<col />
		<col />
	</colgroup>
	<tbody>
		<tr height="22">
			<td height="22" style="height:22px;width:195px;">Ethanol</td>
			<td style="width:71px;">Fisher</td>
			<td style="width:137px;">32221</td>
			<td style="width:79px;"></td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="43">
			<td height="43" style="height:43px;width:195px;">Anhydrous dimethylformamide (DMF)</td>
			<td style="width:71px;">Sigma</td>
			<td style="width:137px;">270547</td>
			<td style="width:79px;"></td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="85">
			<td height="85" style="height:85px;width:195px;">Ammonium hydroxide 50% (v/v) aqueous solution</td>
			<td style="width:71px;">Alfa Aesar</td>
			<td style="width:137px;">35574</td>
			<td style="width:79px;">diluted to 30% (v/v) with pure water</td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="22">
			<td height="22" style="height:22px;width:195px;">TEOS</td>
			<td style="width:71px;">Sigma</td>
			<td style="width:137px;">13190-3</td>
			<td style="width:79px;"></td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="43">
			<td height="43" style="height:43px;width:195px;">3-Aminopropyltriethoxysilane (APTES)</td>
			<td style="width:71px;">Sigma</td>
			<td style="width:137px;">A3648</td>
			<td style="width:79px;"></td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="43">
			<td height="43" style="height:43px;width:195px;">5-(and-6)-carboxyfluorescein, succinimidyl ester (FAM-SE)</td>
			<td style="width:71px;">Invitrogen</td>
			<td style="width:137px;">C1311</td>
			<td style="width:79px;"></td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="85">
			<td height="85" style="height:85px;width:195px;">6-carboxytetramethylrhodamine, succinimidyl ester (TAMRA-SE)</td>
			<td style="width:71px;">Invitrogen</td>
			<td style="width:137px;">C1171</td>
			<td style="width:79px;"></td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="43">
			<td height="43" style="height:43px;width:195px;">Sodium phosphate monobasic (0.2 M)</td>
			<td style="width:71px;">Sigma Aldrich</td>
			<td style="width:137px;">S-9638</td>
			<td style="width:79px;"></td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="43">
			<td height="43" style="height:43px;width:195px;">Sodium phosphate dibasic (0.2 M)</td>
			<td style="width:71px;">Sigma Aldrich</td>
			<td style="width:137px;">S-0876</td>
			<td style="width:79px;"></td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="43">
			<td height="43" style="height:43px;width:195px;">NaOH</td>
			<td style="width:71px;">Sigma Aldrich</td>
			<td style="width:137px;">S8045</td>
			<td style="width:79px;"></td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="43">
			<td height="43" style="height:43px;width:195px;">Trypsin/EDTA</td>
			<td style="width:71px;">Sigma Aldrich</td>
			<td style="width:137px;">T4174</td>
			<td style="width:79px;"></td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="43">
			<td height="43" style="height:43px;width:195px;">Penicillin/Streptomycin</td>
			<td style="width:71px;">Sigma Aldrich</td>
			<td style="width:137px;">P0781</td>
			<td style="width:79px;"></td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="43">
			<td height="43" style="height:43px;width:195px;">PBS</td>
			<td style="width:71px;">Sigma Aldrich</td>
			<td style="width:137px;">D8537</td>
			<td style="width:79px;"></td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="43">
			<td height="43" style="height:43px;width:195px;">DMEM</td>
			<td style="width:71px;">Sigma Aldrich</td>
			<td style="width:137px;">D6046</td>
			<td style="width:79px;"></td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="64">
			<td height="64" style="height:64px;width:195px;">FBS</td>
			<td style="width:71px;">Source Bioscience</td>
			<td style="width:137px;">Batch-213-101992</td>
			<td style="width:79px;"></td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="43">
			<td height="43" style="height:43px;width:195px;">L-Glutamine</td>
			<td style="width:71px;">Sigma Aldrich</td>
			<td style="width:137px;">G7513</td>
			<td style="width:79px;"></td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="22">
			<td height="22" style="height:22px;width:195px;">Lipofectamine 2000</td>
			<td style="width:71px;">Invitrogen</td>
			<td style="width:137px;">11668-019</td>
			<td style="width:79px;"></td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="22">
			<td height="22" style="height:22px;width:195px;">Optimem</td>
			<td style="width:71px;">Invitrogen</td>
			<td style="width:137px;">11058-021</td>
			<td style="width:79px;"></td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="22">
			<td height="22" style="height:22px;width:195px;">LysoTracker Red</td>
			<td style="width:71px;">Invitrogen</td>
			<td style="width:137px;">L-7528</td>
			<td style="width:79px;"></td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="43">
			<td height="43" style="height:43px;width:195px;">Draq5</td>
			<td style="width:71px;">Biostatus Ltd</td>
			<td style="width:137px;">DR50050</td>
			<td style="width:79px;"></td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="22">
			<td height="22" style="height:22px;width:195px;">Nitrogen gas</td>
			<td style="width:71px;">BOC</td>
			<td style="width:137px;"></td>
			<td style="width:79px;"></td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="43">
			<td height="43" style="height:43px;width:195px;">DCM</td>
			<td style="width:71px;">Sigma Aldrich</td>
			<td style="width:137px;">320269</td>
			<td style="width:79px;"></td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="43">
			<td height="43" style="height:43px;width:195px;">TFA</td>
			<td style="width:71px;">Sigma Aldrich</td>
			<td style="width:137px;">T6508</td>
			<td style="width:79px;"></td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="211">
			<td height="211" style="height:211px;width:195px;">Confocal microscope</td>
			<td style="width:71px;">Leica TCS-SP</td>
			<td style="width:137px;"></td>
			<td style="width:79px;">equipped with argon and krypton lasers and a 63X 0.9NA water immersion lens</td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="64">
			<td height="64" style="height:64px;width:195px;">UV light</td>
			<td style="width:71px;">UVLS28 UVP, USA</td>
			<td style="width:137px;"></td>
			<td style="width:79px;"></td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="64">
			<td height="64" style="height:64px;width:195px;">Stirrer plate</td>
			<td style="width:71px;">SB161-3 Jencons-PLS</td>
			<td style="width:137px;"></td>
			<td style="width:79px;"></td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="64">
			<td height="64" style="height:64px;width:195px;">pH meter</td>
			<td style="width:71px;">Jenway model 3510</td>
			<td style="width:137px;"></td>
			<td style="width:79px;"></td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="85">
			<td height="85" style="height:85px;width:195px;">Rotary Evaporator</td>
			<td style="width:71px;">Buchi Rotary Evaporator R200</td>
			<td style="width:137px;"></td>
			<td style="width:79px;"></td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="43">
			<td height="43" style="height:43px;width:195px;">Centrifuge (nanosensors)</td>
			<td style="width:71px;">Hermle Z300</td>
			<td style="width:137px;"></td>
			<td style="width:79px;"></td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="106">
			<td height="106" style="height:106px;width:195px;">Centrifuge (cell culture)</td>
			<td style="width:71px;">Thermo Scientific Heraeus Biofuge Primo</td>
			<td style="width:137px;"></td>
			<td style="width:79px;"></td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="85">
			<td height="85" style="height:85px;width:195px;">Vortex</td>
			<td style="width:71px;">Whirlimixer Fisherbrand</td>
			<td style="width:137px;"></td>
			<td style="width:79px;"></td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="64">
			<td height="64" style="height:64px;width:195px;">Ultrasonicator</td>
			<td style="width:71px;">FB11021 Fisherbrand</td>
			<td style="width:137px;"></td>
			<td style="width:79px;"></td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="64">
			<td height="64" style="height:64px;width:195px;">Aluminum sheet</td>
			<td style="width:71px;">Nottingham University</td>
			<td style="width:137px;"></td>
			<td style="width:79px;"></td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="22">
			<td height="22" style="height:22px;width:195px;">35mm cell culture plate</td>
			<td style="width:71px;">Iwaki</td>
			<td style="width:137px;">3000035</td>
			<td style="width:79px;"></td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="43">
			<td height="43" style="height:43px;width:195px;">10 ml syringe</td>
			<td style="width:71px;">Becton Dickenson</td>
			<td style="width:137px;"></td>
			<td style="width:79px;"></td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="21">
			<td height="21" style="height:21px;width:195px;"></td>
			<td style="width:71px;"></td>
			<td style="width:137px;"></td>
			<td style="width:79px;"></td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="21">
			<td height="21" style="height:21px;"></td>
			<td style="width:71px;"></td>
			<td style="width:137px;"></td>
			<td style="width:79px;"></td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="84">
			<td height="84" style="height:84px;width:195px;">3T3 Fibroblast cells</td>
			<td style="width:71px;">European Collection of Cell Cultures</td>
			<td style="width:137px;"></td>
			<td style="width:79px;"></td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="63">
			<td height="63" style="height:63px;width:195px;">PLGA</td>
			<td style="width:71px;">Lakeshore Biomaterials</td>
			<td>7525 DLG 7E</td>
			<td style="width:79px;"></td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="42">
			<td height="42" style="height:42px;">Pyridinium formate</td>
			<td style="width:71px;">Sigma Aldrich</td>
			<td>P8535</td>
			<td style="width:79px;"></td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="42">
			<td height="42" style="height:42px;width:195px;">Trypan blue</td>
			<td style="width:71px;">Sigma Aldrich</td>
			<td>T8154</td>
			<td style="width:79px;"></td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="42">
			<td height="42" style="height:42px;">Sodium phosphate monobasic</td>
			<td style="width:71px;">Sigma Aldrich</td>
			<td>S9638</td>
			<td style="width:79px;"></td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="42">
			<td height="42" style="height:42px;width:195px;">Sodium phosphate dibasic</td>
			<td style="width:71px;">Sigma Aldrich</td>
			<td>S5136</td>
			<td style="width:79px;"></td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="42">
			<td height="42" style="height:42px;width:195px;">HCl</td>
			<td style="width:71px;">Sigma Aldrich</td>
			<td>320331</td>
			<td style="width:79px;"></td>
		</tr>
	</tbody>
</table>

self-reporting scaffolds for 3-dimensional cell culture

Culturing cells in 3D on appropriate scaffolds is thought to better mimic the in vivo microenvironment and increase cell-cell interactions. The resulting 3D cellular construct can often be more relevant to studying the molecular events and cell-cell interactions than similar experiments studied in 2D. To create effective 3D cultures with high cell viability throughout the scaffold the culture conditions such as oxygen and pH need to be carefully controlled as gradients in analyte concentration can exist throughout the 3D construct. Here we describe the methods of preparing biocompatible pH responsive sol-gel nanosensors and their incorporation into poly(lactic-co-glycolic acid) (PLGA) electrospun scaffolds along with their subsequent preparation for the culture of mammalian cells. The pH responsive scaffolds can be used as tools to determine microenvironmental pH within a 3D cellular construct. Furthermore, we detail the delivery of pH responsive nanosensors to the intracellular environment of mammalian cells whose growth was supported by electrospun PLGA scaffolds. The cytoplasmic location of the pH responsive nanosensors can be utilized to monitor intracellular pH (pHi) during ongoing experimentation.

The size distribution of the prepared pH responsive nanosensors was characterized using SEM, where the population of nanosensors imaged were measured and found to have nanometer dimensions in the range of 240-470 nm (Figure 1A). The achievement of a narrow and reasonably small diameter is consistent with using the St&#246;ber method to prepare nanoparticles. It has been found that using a basic pH environment during the synthesis of nanoparticles i.e. nanoparticles prepared using the St&#246;ber...

Watch this Scientific Journal Video about Self-reporting Scaffolds for 3-Dimensional Cell Culture at JoVE.com

Self-reporting Scaffolds for 3-Dimensional Cell Culture

Biocompatible pH responsive sol-gel nanosensors can be incorporated into poly(lactic-co-glycolic acid) (PLGA) electrospun scaffolds. The produced self-reporting scaffolds can be used for in&#160;situ monitoring of microenvironmental conditions whilst culturing cells upon the scaffold. This is beneficial as the 3D cellular construct can be monitored in real-time without disturbing the experiment.

Culturing cells in 3D on appropriate scaffolds is thought to better mimic the in vivo microenvironment and increase cell-cell interactions. The resulting ...

self-reporting-scaffolds-for-3-dimensional-cell-culture

Research

JoVE Journal

Bioengineering

13.1K vistas.  University of Nottingham. Biocompatible pH responsive sol-gel nanosensors can be incorporated into poly(lactic-co-glycolic acid) (PLGA) electrospun scaffolds. The produced self-reporting scaffolds can be used for in situ monitoring of microenvironmental conditions whilst culturing cells upon the scaffold. This is beneficial as the 3D cellular construct can be monitored in real-time without disturbing the experiment.