A tailored polylactic acid/polycaprolactone biodegradable and bioactive 3D porous scaffold containing gelatin nanofibers and Taurine for bone regeneration

Hadi Samadian,Mostafa Alam,Arindam Bit,Arash Goodarzi,Ahmad Vaez,Majid Salehi,Gholamhossein Darya,Saeed Farzamfar,Arian Ehterami

doi:10.1038/s41598-020-70155-2

Abstract

The focus of the current study was to develop a functional and bioactive scaffold through the combination of 3D polylactic acid (PLA)/polycaprolactone (PCL) with gelatin nanofibers (GNFs) and Taurine (Tau) for bone defect regeneration. GNFs were fabricated via electrospinning dispersed in PLA/PCL polymer solution, Tau with different concentrations was added, and the polymer solution converted into a 3D and porous scaffold via the thermally-induced phase separation technique. The characterization results showed that the scaffolds have interconnected pores with the porosity of up to 90%. Moreover, Tau increased the wettability and weight loss rate, while compromised the compressive strengths. The scaffolds were hemo- and cytocompatible and supported cell viability and proliferation. The in vivo studies showed that the defects treated with scaffolds filled with new bone. The computed tomography (CT) imaging and histopathological observation revealed that the PLA/PCL/Gel/Tau 10% provided the highest new bone formation, angiogenesis, and woven bone among the treatment groups. Our finding illustrated that the fabricated scaffold was able to regenerate bone within the defect and can be considered as the effective scaffold for bone tissue engineering application.

Highlights

Bone is a typical complex tissue with a hierarchical structure that supports the body, protects internal organs, facilitates movement, stores, and releases minerals
The results of hydrogel imaging showed that the scaffolds have interconnected pore microstructure, which is critical for cell infiltration, nutrient, and waste transfer
Tissue engineering is an innovative approach toward the regeneration of damaged tissues using the combination of tailored structures as the scaffolds with bioactive substances

Summary

Introduction

Bone is a typical complex tissue with a hierarchical structure that supports the body, protects internal organs, facilitates movement, stores, and releases minerals. Lee et al and Zha et al showed that the incorporation of gelatin into the scaffolds promotes osteoblast cell attachment and proliferation[13,14] Despite their wide applications in the bone tissue engineering, their translation to the clinics has not been achieved due to their 2D structure. The thermally-induced phase separation (TIPS) technique is a valuable method to fabricate 3D scaffolds with adjustable porosity and interconnected pores, critical for bone tissue engineering In this approach, the intended homogenous polymer solution underwents a phase separation under the proper temperature and separates into polymer-rich and polymer-lean regions. In the current study, we aimed to combine the positive biological activities of electrospun (GNFs) and Tau with the structural features of the TIP-based scaffold to develop an innovative tissue engineering approach for bone regeneration

Objectives

Methods

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Conclusion