THE CYTOTOXIC EFFECTS OF POLYVINYL ALCOHOL ON HELA CELL MODEL

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Objective. The objective of this study was to investigate the cytotoxic effects of different concentrations of this cryogel hydrogel on HeLa cells. Background. Polyvinyl alcohol (PVOH) is a synthetic hydrophilic linear polymer with unique properties such as water-retention, hydrophilicity, biodegradability, mechanical stability, and capability of forming a 3D structure, allowing its safe use in many biomedical applications Methods. Cryogel hydrogels were prepared from PVOH (Mw 124-186K, 99% hydrolyzed) solutions (3, 5, 8, and 10 wt%) subjected to two freezethaw cycles of freezing (4 hrs @ -10oC) followed by thawing (2hrs @ 25oC). HeLa cells (a cervical cancer cells) grown in 24 well plate at 20 ×104 were exposed to 50mg of sterile PVOH cryogels. Cell survival was estimated after 48hr of incubation at 37°C in 5% CO2. The survival of cells exposed to cryogels was compared to that of the cells without hydrogel treatment. The cytotoxic effect of the hydrogel was assessed by determining the viability of the cells using MTT- a mitochondrial assay. Results. The cells exposed to hydrogel displayed excellent viability in all concentrations. Slight decrease in the number of cells grown in the presence of 5% gel was insignificant compared to that of control or at any other concentrations. Conclusion. Results showed that PVOH cryogels of this study are not cytotoxic, and have the potential to be used in cell-based therapy, however further studies are needed to evaluate the cell survival in a 3D environment. Grants. The research was supported by PFRDG