Synthesis of new polysialic acid derivatives.

In this paper we report the first synthesis of novel polysialic acid derivatives which is initiated by treatment of polysialic acid with EDC-HCl to yield the inter-residual delta-lactone. Subsequent reaction with amines or hydrazine gives the corresponding polysialic acid amides and hydrazide. Alkylation of the tetrabutylammonium salt of polysialic acid yields polysialic acid esters. In contrast a variety of N-derivatives of polysialic acid can be prepared starting from deacetylated polysialic acid. The N-derivatives prepared in this communication can be used for the Cu-catalyzed as well as Cu-free "click" chemistry.

Fiber scaffolds of polysialic acid via electrospinning for peripheral nerve regeneration.

Fiber scaffolds of bioactive polysialic acid have been prepared via electrospinning for peripheral nerve regeneration. The diameter, morphology and alignment of fibers in scaffolds were adjusted by variation of electrospinning parameters, which are decisive for the cell-scaffold interaction. Due to the high water solubility of polysialic acid (poly-alpha-2,8-N-acetylneuraminic acid) a photoactive derivative (poly-alpha-2,8-N-pentenoylneuraminic acid) was used to obtain stable fiber scaffolds in water by photochemical crosslinking. At the optimized fiber scaffolds good cell viability and directed cell proliferation along the fibers was achieved by cell tests with immortalized Schwann cells.

Synthesis and biological evaluation of a polysialic acid-based hydrogel as enzymatically degradable scaffold material for tissue engineering.

Restorative medicine has a constant need for improved scaffold materials. Degradable biopolymers often suffer from uncontrolled chemical or enzymatic hydrolysis by the host. The need for a second surgery on the other hand is a major drawback for nondegradable scaffold materials. In this paper we report the design and synthesis of a novel polysialic acid-based hydrogel with promising properties. Hydrogel synthesis was optimized and enzymatic degradation was studied using a phage-born endosialidase. After addition of endosialidase, hydrogels readily degraded depending on the amount of initially used cross-linker within 2 to 11 days. This polysialic acid hydrogel is not cytotoxic, completely stable under physiological conditions, and could be evaluated as growth support for PC12 cells. Here, additional coating with collagen I, poly-L-lysine or matrigel is mandatory to improve the properties of the material.

The effect of modified polysialic acid based hydrogels on the adhesion and viability of primary neurons and glial cells.

In this study we present the enzymatic and biological analysis of polysialic acid (polySia) based hydrogel in terms of its degradation and cytocompatibility. PolySia based hydrogel is completely degradable by endosialidase enzyme which may avoid second surgery after tissue recovery. Viability assay showed that soluble components of polySia hydrogel did not cause any toxic effect on cultured Schwann cells. Moreover, green fluorescence protein transfected neonatal and adult Schwann cells, neural stem cells and dorsal root ganglionic cells (unlabelled) were seeded on polySia hydrogel modified with poly-L-lysine (Pll), poly-L-ornithine-laminin (porn-laminin) or collagen. Water soluble tetrazolium salt assay revealed that modification of the hydrogel significantly improved cell adhesion and viability. These results infer that polySia based scaffolds in combination with cell adhesion molecules and cells genetically modified to express growth factors would potentially be promising alternative in reconstructive therapeutic strategies.