Dual Ionic and Photo-Crosslinked Alginate Hydrogels for Micropatterned Spatial Control of Material Properties and Cell Behavior.

Biomaterial properties such as mechanics, degradation rate, and cell adhesivity affect cell behaviors including spreading, proliferation, and differentiation. To engineer complex tissues, it is often desirable to achieve precise spatial control over these properties. Here, methacrylated alginate (MA-ALG) was used to create hydrogels comprising a single base material with regions of different types and levels of crosslinking and subsequently different material properties.