Versatile cell cultivation on injectable poly(butylene adipate-co-terephthalate) microcarriers: Impact of surface properties across different cell types

Injectable cell therapies offer several advantages compared with traditional open surgery, including less trauma to the patient, shorter recovery time, and lower risk of infection. However, a significant problem is the difficulty in developing effective cell delivery carriers that are cyto-compatible and maintain cell viability both during and after injection. In the presented study, it was aimed to develop poly(butylene adipate-co-terephthalate) (PBAT) microcarriers using the emulsion preparation-solvent evaporation technique. The optimized diameter of the PBAT microcarriers was determined as 104 ± 15 μm at 700 rpm and there would be no blockage after injection due to the nonswelling feature of microcarriers. Furthermore, the cellular activities of PBAT microcarriers were evaluated in static culture for 7 days using L929 mouse fibroblasts, MC3T3-E1 mouse pre-osteoblasts, and rat adipose-derived mesenchymal cells (AdMSCs). 3-[4,5-Dimethylthiazol-2-yl]-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide results and Sscanning electron microscope images showed that PBAT microcarriers increased the adhesion and proliferation properties of pre-osteoblasts and stem cells, while L929 fibroblasts formed aggregates by adhering to certain regions of the microcarrier surface and did not spread on the surface. These results emphasize that PBAT microcarriers can be used as injectable carriers, especially in stem cell therapies, but their surface properties need to be modified for some cells.