Influence of Nanofiber Orientation on Morphological and Mechanical Properties of Electrospun Chitosan Mats

J Healthc Eng. 2018 Nov 13:2018:3651480. doi: 10.1155/2018/3651480. eCollection 2018.

Abstract

This work explored the use of chitosan (Cs) and poly(ethylene oxide) (PEO) blends for the fabrication of electrospun fiber-orientated meshes potentially suitable for engineering fiber-reinforced soft tissues such as tendons, ligaments, or meniscus. To mimic the fiber alignment present in native tissue, the CS/PEO blend solution was electrospun using a traditional static plate, a rotating drum collector, and a rotating disk collector to get, respectively, random, parallel, circumferential-oriented fibers. The effects of the different orientations (parallel or circumferential) and high-speed rotating collector influenced fiber morphology, leading to a reduction in nanofiber diameters and an improvement in mechanical properties.

MeSH terms

  • Biocompatible Materials / chemistry
  • Chitosan / chemistry*
  • Electrochemical Techniques / methods*
  • Nanofibers / chemistry*
  • Nanofibers / ultrastructure*
  • Particle Size
  • Polyethylene Glycols / chemistry
  • Tissue Engineering
  • Tissue Scaffolds / chemistry*

Substances

  • Biocompatible Materials
  • Polyethylene Glycols
  • Chitosan