Regeneration of intervertebral disc using gellan sponge loading PLGA microspheres

Gellan gum as a natural polysaccharide has good heat resistance, acid resistance and enzymes resistance. However, one of the drawbacks of gellan gum might be the lower mechanical strength. In this work, gellan gum scaffolds were mixed with poly(lactic-co-glycolic acid) (PLGA) microsphere in order to improve mechanical properties. The gellan gum scaffolds with various contents of PLGA microsphere were prepared for the regeneration of disc tissues. To evaluate the mechanical strength of hybrid structure of gellan gum and PLGA microsphere, compression strength of the fabricated scaffolds was measured. MTT analysis, SEM observation, histological evaluation and RT-PCR were performed to confirm the effect on the cell growth and extracellular matrix secretion. As a result, it showed the best cell proliferation and extracellular matrix secretion in gellan gum sponge containing 50% PLGA microspheres. In conclusion, this study confirmed that the hybrid structure of gellan gum and PLGA microspheres was found suitable in regeneration of the intervertebral disc.