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Development of implantable devices based on the principles of in vitro organogenesis has been hindered due to the prolonged time required to develop an implantable device. Herein we assessed the influence of serum concentration (0.5 % and 10 %), oxygen tension (0.5 %, 2 % and 20 %) and macromolecular crowding (75 μg/ml carrageenan) in extracellular matrix deposition in human corneal fibroblast culture (3, 7 and 14 days). The highest extracellular matrix deposition was observed after 14 days in culture at 0.5 % serum, 2 % oxygen tension and 75 μg/ml carrageenan. These data indicate that low oxygen tension coupled with macromolecular crowding significantly accelerate the development of scaffold-free tissue-like modules. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.

Polysaccharides are frequently incorporated into scaffolds for tissue engineering applications to improve mechanical and biological properties. We evaluated the influence of a Ficoll® scaffold on collagen films, a scaffold that is extensively used for soft and hard tissue repair. To avoid cytotoxicity issues associated with chemical reagents, the influence of genipin, a naturally occurring crosslinking agent, was assessed. Ultra-structural level collagen films formed with and without Ficoll showed a fine fibrillar structure whereas genipin crosslinked films showed a coarse fibrillar and partially nodular structure. In contrast, glutaraldehyde crosslinked films lost their fibrillar pattern. Crosslinking significantly increased denaturation temperature (p