Effect of sonication power on the degree of cell removal and scaffold integrity of decellularized porcine kidney cortex using a bath-type sonicator

• Main Authors: Estrellado, John Ray C., Galang, Maria Gabrielle Y.
• Format: text
• Language: English
• Published: Animo Repository 2022
• Subjects: Tissue scaffolds; Sonication; Chemical Engineering
• Online Access: https://animorepository.dlsu.edu.ph/etdb_chemeng/22; https://animorepository.dlsu.edu.ph/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1018&context=etdb_chemeng
• Institution: De La Salle University

Biological scaffolds serve as templates for whole organ regeneration which addresses organ shortage. Chemical immersion using a detergent, such as sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS), is one of the common methods for decellularization. However, immersion alone using a high concentration of detergent might cause structural damage to the biological scaffold produced. Thus, a combination of chemical and physical methods such as chemical immersion with sonication can be used to decellularize the porcine kidney cortex samples using low surfactant concentration. The study aims to decellularize porcine kidney cortex samples at low SDS concentration with the aid of sonication. Porcine kidney cortex samples were subjected to 0.1% SDS for five hours with the aid of a bath-type sonicator with varying power values of 0 W, 120 W, 180 W, 240 W, and 300 W. The extent of cell removal of the decellularized tissue samples were assessed using a scoring system based on the hematoxylin and eosin (H&E)- stained images of the tissue samples and the amount of remaining cellular material was quantified through DNA quantification. The structural integrity of the samples was also evaluated using a scoring system on the H&E-stained images of the tissue samples. Results showed that there was no significant difference between the treatments with varying sonication power on the nuclear basophilia score and residual DNA concentration of the partially decellularized tissue samples, suggesting that the effect of power on the degree of cell removal was insignificant within five hours of decellularization. On the other hand, a significant difference existed between the sonication power used and the structural integrity of the decellularized tissue samples. Compared to studies that utilized decellularization at high SDS concentration which caused damages in the microarchitecture, the use of sonication at low SDS concentration aided in maintaining the intact microarchitecture of the sample. Hence, chemical immersion at low SDS concentration with the aid of sonication for five hours can partially decellularize porcine kidney cortex samples with minimal to moderate cell removal and minimal disruption in the architectural integrity of the scaffold.