Silica@proton-alginate microreactors: a versatile platform for cell encapsulation

ANA CECILIA SPEDALIERI; CLÉMENCE SICARD; ANA MERCEDES PERULLINI; BRAYNER, ROBERTA,; CORADIN, THIBAUD; JACQUES LIVAGE; ALDABE BILMES, SARA; MATIAS JOBBAGY

JOURNAL OF MATERIALS CHEMISTRY B

ROYAL SOC CHEMISTRY

Lugar: CAMBRIDGE; Año: 2015 vol. 3 p. 3189 - 3194

2050-750X

As an alternative approach to the well known Ca(II)-Alginate encapsulation process within silica hydrogels, proton-driven alginate gelation was investigated in order to establish its capacity as a culture carrier, both isolated and embedded in an inorganic matrix. Control over the velocity of the proton-gelation front allows the formation of a hydrogel shell while the core remains liquid, allowing bacteria and microalgae to survive the strongly acidic encapsulation process. Once inside the inorganic host, synthesized by a sol-gel process, the capsules spontaneously redissolve without the aid of external complexing agents. The entrapped cells survive the two-step process in a significant extent; culture´s growth restores the initial cell count in less than two weeks. Biosynthesis of Au nanoparticles mediated by the entrapped microalgae illustrates the preservation of the biosynthetic abilities supported by this platform.