Gelatin Porous Scaffolds Fabricated by a Simple Gas Foaming Technique: Characterisation and Cytotoxicity Assessment

The current study presents an effective and simple strategy to obtain stable porous scaffolds from gelatin via a gas foaming method. The technique exploits the intrinsic foaming ability of gelatin in the presence of CO₂ to obtain a porous structure stabilised with glutaraldehyde. The produced scaffolds were characterised using physical and mechanical characterisation methods. The results showed that gas foaming may allow the tailoring of the 3-dimensional structure of the scaffolds with an interconnected porous structure. To assess the effectiveness of the preparation method in mitigating the potential cytotoxicity risk of using glutaraldehyde as a crosslinker, direct and in-direct cytotoxicity assays were performed at different concentrations of glutaraldehyde. The results indicate the potential of the gas foaming method, in the preparation of viable tissue engineering scaffolds.