Graphene Oxide and Quantum Dot-Enhanced Alginate Scaffolds: Structural, Mechanical, and Biological Correlations for Neural Tissue Engineering Applications

The integration of graphene-based nanomaterials into biopolymeric scaffolds offers a promising route to enhance mechanical, physicochemical, and biological performance for neural tissue engineering. In this work, alginate-based scaffolds incorporating graphene oxide (GO) and graphene quantum dots (GQDs) were fabricated via modified Hummer’s and hydrothermal methods, respectively, at varying concentrations. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) analysis revealed that GO increased surface roughness and formed interconnected porous networks, promoting superior cell adhesion and infiltration, while GQDs enhanced porosity but contributed less to mechanical reinforcement. Compressive strength improved significantly in GOcontaining scaffolds (7 kPa) compared to GQDs (3 kPa), correlating with higher in vitro cell proliferation and adhesion. Attenuated total reflectance Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (ATR-FTIR) confirmed nanomaterial integration into the alginate matrix. Swelling and degradation assays indicated faster degradation for AL-GQDs scaffolds, whereas conductivity testing showed higher electrical performance in GQDs-based scaffolds due to quantum confinement effects. Gene expression analysis revealed significant upregulation of PLCB1 and TRPV1 in AL-GO scaffolds, highlighting microarchitecture-mediated mechanotransduction. The presence of botulinum neurotoxin type A (BoNT/A) suppressed gene expression; however, AL-GO scaffolds maintained higher functional expression levels. Overall, scaffold and nanomaterial selection were shown to critically shape cellular responses, making AL-GO scaffolds promising candidates for neural tissue engineering.