Quantum dots-βcyclodextrin-histidine labeled human adipose stem cells-laden chitosan hydrogel for bone tissue engineering

Official URL: https://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.nano.2020.102217

Mesenchymal stem cells with differentiation ability to diverse cells play a crucial role in tissue engineering. Tracking the fate of these cells during the regeneration of tissue helps to obtain more information about their function. In this study, histidine conjugated β-cyclodextrin as a cell-penetrating carrier with drug loading ability was attached to QDs nanoparticle (QD-βCD-His) for stem cell labeling. Traceability of QD-βCD-His labeled human adipose stem cells (hASCs) was monitored in 2D cell culture and 3D temperature-sensitive chitosan hydrogel scaffold. Dexamethasone (Dex) as an osteoinductive drug was loaded into QD-βCD-His nano-carrier (QD-βCD-His@Dex) to induce bone differentiation of labeled cells. Overall results indicated that QD-βCD-His@Dex is a promising dual-purpose nano-carrier for stem cell labeling with osteoinductive potential in cell therapy as well as tissue engineering scaffolds.