Aligned bioactive multi-component nanofibrous nanocomposite scaffolds for bone tissue engineering

Macromol Biosci. 2010 Apr 8;10(4):433-44. doi: 10.1002/mabi.200900287.

Abstract

The ability to mimic the chemical, physical and mechanical properties of the natural extra-cellular matrix is a key requirement for tissue engineering scaffolds to be successful. In this study, we successfully fabricated aligned nanofibrous multi-component scaffolds for bone tissue engineering using electrospinning. The chemical features were mimicked by using the natural components of bone: collagen and nano-hydroxyapatite along with poly[(D,L-lactide)-co-glycolide] as the major component. Anisotropic features were mimicked by aligning the nanofibers using a rotating mandrel collector. We evaluated the effect of incorporation of nano-HA particles to the system. The morphology and mechanical properties revealed that,at low concentrations, nano-HA acted as a reinforcement. However, at higher nano-HA loadings, it was difficult to disrupt aggregations and, hence, a detrimental effect was observed on the overall scaffold properties. Thermal analysis showed that there were slight interactions between the individual components even though the polymers existed as a two-phase system. Preliminary in vitro cell-culture studies revealed that the scaffold supported cell adhesion and spreading. The cells assumed a highly aligned morphology along the direction of fiber orientation. Protein adsorption experiments revealed that the synergistic effect of increased surface area and the presence of nano-HA in the polymer matrix enhanced total protein adsorption. Crosslinking with 1-ethyl-3-(3-dimethylaminopropyl) carbodiimide hydrochloride resulted in improved mechanical properties of the scaffolds and improved degradation stability, under physiological conditions.

Publication types

  • Research Support, U.S. Gov't, Non-P.H.S.

MeSH terms

  • Biocompatible Materials / chemistry*
  • Biocompatible Materials / metabolism*
  • Bone Regeneration*
  • Buffers
  • Calorimetry, Differential Scanning
  • Cell Adhesion
  • Cell Proliferation
  • Collagen / chemistry
  • Durapatite / chemistry
  • Ethyldimethylaminopropyl Carbodiimide / chemistry
  • Fibronectins / metabolism
  • Humans
  • Lactic Acid / chemistry
  • Mesenchymal Stem Cells / cytology
  • Microscopy, Electron, Scanning
  • Nanocomposites / chemistry*
  • Nanocomposites / ultrastructure
  • Nanofibers / chemistry*
  • Nanofibers / ultrastructure
  • Polyglycolic Acid / chemistry
  • Polylactic Acid-Polyglycolic Acid Copolymer
  • Serum / metabolism
  • Spectroscopy, Fourier Transform Infrared
  • Tensile Strength
  • Tissue Engineering / methods*
  • Tissue Scaffolds / chemistry*
  • Trypsin / metabolism
  • Vitronectin / metabolism

Substances

  • Biocompatible Materials
  • Buffers
  • Fibronectins
  • Vitronectin
  • Polylactic Acid-Polyglycolic Acid Copolymer
  • Polyglycolic Acid
  • Lactic Acid
  • Collagen
  • Durapatite
  • Trypsin
  • Ethyldimethylaminopropyl Carbodiimide