Chitin agglomerated scaffolds were produced and functionalized using the green chemistry principles and  5
clean  technologies.  Such  combination  enabled  the  functionalization  of  chitin  microparticles  prepared
through dissolution of the polymer in ionic liquids, followed by of the application of a sol-gel method.
Finally, the 3D constructs were moulded and dried using a supercritical assisted agglomeration method.
Structural and morphological characterization is presented using scanning electronic microscopy (SEM)
and micro-computed tomography (µ-CT).  An evaluationof the bioactive behavior of the  matrices  was  10
made by immersing them in simulated body fluid (SBF) for up to 21 days. The potential of such matrices
as drug delivery systems was evaluated after the incorporation of dexamethasone into the matrices during
drying  in  supercritical  assisted  agglomeration.  The findings  suggested  that  the  morphological  features
such as porosity, interconnectivity and pore size distribution of the matrices can be tunned by changing
particle  size,  chitin  concentration  and  the pressure  applied during  moulding.  Chitin  microspheres  were  15
modified by siloxane and silanol groups, providing a bioactive behavior; the apatite formation was shown
to  be  dependent  on  the  amount  and  arrangement  of  silanol  groups.  Furthermore,  in  vitro  drug  release studies showed that dexamethasone was sustainably released. All findings suggest that this strategy isa
feasible and advantageous process to obtain chitin-based 3D structures with both functional and structural
characteristics that make then suitable for regenerative medicine applications.