Thin natural gelatin/chitosan nanofibrous scaffolds for retinal pigment epithelium cells

ABSTRACTDamage of the retinal pigmented epithelial cells cause various diseases such as age-related macular degeneration (AMD) in retinal tissue. Nowadays, scientists are attempting to replace lost retinal cells with healthy and efficient cells which provide better conditions for recovering and preventing blindness. In this study, gelatin/chitosan nanofibrous scaffolds with mean diameters of 180 nm were fabricated for subretinal space through electrospinning. Thickness and morphology of the gelatin-chitosan scaffolds were analyzed by scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The results showed that the high rate of degradation i.e., 90% damage was obtained after one month. The cell viability of gelatin/chitosan nanofibers were measured by MTT assay. The SEM results of cultured RPE on gelatin/chitosan scaffolds showed the appropriate adhesion of cells on the substrate. The results of the identity of RPE cells cultured on the scaffolds indicated that a large number of cells strongly expressed RPE65 and cytokerati...