EFFECT OF LASER THERAPY ON MC3T3-E1 CELLS CULTURED ON CHITOSAN SCAFFOLDS
Laser; biometerials; polimers; cell proliferation
Chitosan is a biopolymer produced from the deacetylation of chitin and has potential use as a scaffold in tissue engineering due to its mechanical and biological properties, such as biodegradability, non-toxicity, antibacterial effect and biocompatibility. Laser therapy has also been studied as an auxiliary tool in tissue engineering techniques, due to its in vitro biostimulatory effect in several cell types. This project aims to evaluate the effect of laser therapy on preosteoblastic cells cultured on two-dimensional chitosan scaffolds. MC3T3-E1 cells will be cultured on chitosan disks and the scaffolds will be divided into three groups: L0 - without irradiation; L1 - irradiated with a dose of 1 J/cm²; and L4 - irradiated with a dose of 4 J/cm². Laser therapy will be performed with InGaAlP diode laser, with wavelength of 660 nm, power of 30 mW, in a single dose. Cell proliferation will be analyzed at 24, 48 and 72 hours after irradiation through the Alamar Blue metabolic reduction assay, while cell viability will be assessed by the Live/Dead assay. Cell morphology, cell/biomaterial integration and shape effect will be evaluated at 72 h by scanning electron microscopy. The quantitative data will be submitted to statistical tests, considering a level of significance of 5%. It is expected that this project point favorable results of laser therapy in preosteoblastic cells grown on chitosan scaffolds, contributing to future studies on bone tissue engineering.