Hyaluronic acid (HA) is one of the most applied biomaterials in a tissue engineering field due to its biocompatibility and its presence in the native extracellular matrix (ECM) of tissues. However, the mechanical property of the HA is weak and requires specific treatment to improve its properties. The application of Agarose (AG) hydrogel is widely studied and used as a support for the three-dimensional culture of cells due to its biocompatibility. Nevertheless, AG itself lacks the biological environment of the matrix which is unsuitable for the growth of the encapsulated cells. In this study, the composite of HA hydrogel and AG hydrogel (HA/AG hydrogel) is proposed to supplement the drawbacks of each hydrogel. HA provided enhanced microenvironment of matrix and AG improved the mechanical properties and assisted the cells. The characterization of the blended hydrogels was carried out with FT-IR, weight loss, swelling ratio, and compressive strength study. The biocompatibility and biological environment of the composite was evaluated by dimethylthiazol-2-yl-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide; thiazolyl blue (MTT), live/dead staining, and morphological study. The composite biomaterial exhibited applicability for cartilage tissue engineering and the in vitro study of the cell-laden HA/AG hydrogel displayed potential for cartilage tissue engineering in the future.

透明质酸（HA）由于其生物相容性及其在组织的天然细胞外基质（ECM）中的存在而成为组织工程领域应用最广泛的生物材料之一。但是，HA的机械性能较弱，需要进行特殊处理以改善其性能。琼脂糖（AG）水凝胶的应用由于其生物相容性而得到了广泛的研究，并被用作细胞三维培养的载体。然而，AG本身缺乏基质的生物环境，该环境不适用于被包封的细胞的生长。在这项研究中，提出了HA水凝胶和AG水凝胶的复合材料（HA / AG水凝胶），以弥补每种水凝胶的缺点。HA提供了增强的基质微环境，AG改善了机械性能并辅助了细胞。通过FT-IR，重量损失，溶胀率和抗压强度研究进行了共混水凝胶的表征。用二甲基噻唑-2-基-2,5-二苯基四唑溴化物评估了复合材料的生物相容性和生物环境。噻唑蓝（MTT），活/死染色和形态学研究。该复合生物材料具有适用于软骨组织工程及其应用的特点。富含细胞的HA / AG水凝胶的体外研究显示了将来软骨组织工程的潜力。