Seaweed polysaccharide-based hydrogels used for the regeneration of articular cartilage

This manuscript provides an overview of the in vitro and in vivo studies reported in the
literature focusing on seaweed polysaccharides based hydrogels that have been proposed for
applications in regenerative medicine, particularly, in the field of cartilage tissue engineering.
For a better understanding of the main requisites for these specific applications, the main
aspects of the native cartilage structure, as well as recognized diseases that affect this tissue are
briefly described. Current available treatments are also presented to emphasize the need for
alternative techniques. The following part of this review is centered on the description of the
general characteristics of algae polysaccharides, as well as relevant properties required for
designing hydrogels for cartilage tissue engineering purposes. An in-depth overview of the
most well known seaweed polysaccharide, namely agarose, alginate, carrageenan and ulvan
biopolymeric gels, that have been proposed for engineering cartilage is also provided. Finally,
this review describes and summarizes the translational aspect for the clinical application of
alternative systems emphasizing the importance of cryopreservation and the commercial
products currently available for cartilage treatment.