A simple method for generating small calcium-alginate beads by syringe. (December 2014)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Delbari, Ali; Fadaei, Fatemeh; Salehi, Mohammad; Farahani, Reza Mastery; Piryaei, Abbas; Heidari, Mohammad Hassan; Nourozian, Mohsen; Mansouri, Vahid
• Is Part Of: Journal of histotechnology. Volume 37:Number 4(2014)
• Page Start: 132
• Page End: 137
• Publication Date: 2014-12
• Subjects: Histology -- Periodicals; Cytology -- Periodicals; 611.018
• DOI: 10.1179/2046023614Y.0000000048
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 0147-8885

Abstract

<abstract> <title> <x content-type="archive" xml:space="preserve">Abstract</x> </title> <p>Currently, cell microencapsulation (CM) is a promising technology for a wide range of areas of interest in cellular and molecular biology. This technique can be used for large-scale cell culture, cell implantation, and cell-based gene therapy. Although several materials have been used for CM, alginate is considered to be quite effective. Alginate bead-containing cells can be prepared by extruding a cell–alginate mixture into a calcium chloride solution. It is possible to easily create calcium alginate (Ca-alginate) beads with a syringe. However, beads that are generated by syringes are not suitable for CM due to their large size (&gt;1000 μm). Researchers have proposed a number of solutions for this problem. The use of certain equipment is an inseparable part of these solutions. This study demonstrated that small size (&lt;400 μm) Ca-alginate beads can successfully be generated by modifying the syringe method. In this study, this method was successfully employed for CM and embryoid body (EB) formation in alginate.</p> </abstract>