Ulvan: a new natural derived biomaterial obtained from renewable marine resources

[Excerpt] It is not hard to understand the commitment set in tissue engineering research and the effort to find better performing materials. The ultimate goal: an ideal scaffold with cell and tissue compliant mechanical properties that supports cellular attachment, growth and differentiation. In this study, a new natural derived polysaccharide–ulvan–found at the cell wall of green algae Ulva, the common sea lettuce, was investigated. The aim of this research work is to study and develop novel biomedical applications based on this polysaccharide, with special emphasis to tissue engineering. The polysaccharide ulvan, composed of sulphated rhamnose, xylose, glucoronic and iduronic acids, was isolated from Ulva batch by step extraction using hot water and precipitation with organic solvents. The obtained polysaccharide was then used to produce polymeric films by solvent casting.[...]