Abstract
In the present study, we have in situ synthesized polypyrrole (PPy) on the hydroxyethyl cellulose/soy protein isolate (HEC/SPI) sponges to construct electro-conductive HEC/SPI/PPy composite sponges (EHSS-Pn, n > 0). The composite sponges were characterized by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, conductivity and mechanical tests. The results indicated that EHSS-Pn still exhibit homogenous inter-connected macroporous structure for cell adhesion, proliferation and metabolism, indicating that the incorporation of PPy didn’t break the original HEC/SPI sponge structure. The electrical conductivity and mechanical properties of the HEC/SPI sponge were improved significantly by the incorporation of PPy. Cytocompatibility and hemocompatibility of all the sponges were evaluated by a series of in vitro experiments. The results of MTT assay and cell direct contact tests showed that the introduction of PPy didn’t cause any cytotoxicity and EHSS-Pn had good biocompatibility. Moreover, EHSS-Pn had good hemocompatibility and no obvious side effects on the as-prepared anticoagulant whole blood after the introduction of PPy. Therefore, the electro-conductive EHSS-Pn showed potential application in the tissue engineering field that requires electrical conductivity for stimulation or sensing such as neural tissue restoration.
Highlights
Electric signals could regulate our body functions such as neural communication and heartbeat through the transmitting of information from neuron to neuron by synapses or the production of electrical impulses that travel through the entire organ, respectively (Funk et al 2009; Alegret et al 2019)
The results showed that the resultant hydroxyethyl cellulose/soy protein isolate (HEC/SPI)/PPy sponges exhibited macro-porous structure, proper electrical conductivity and mechanical property, good cytocompatibility and hemocompatiblity, showing potential applications as 3D implants with electrical conductivity requirement (Milakin et al 2020)
The effect of the introduction of PPy on the morphologies for the surface of the hydroxyethyl cellulose (HEC)/SPI sponges was studied by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) (Fig. 1)
Summary
Electric signals could regulate our body functions such as neural communication and heartbeat through the transmitting of information from neuron to neuron by synapses or the production of electrical impulses that travel through the entire organ, respectively (Funk et al 2009; Alegret et al 2019). Some tissues such as bone marrow, could use conductivity to regenerate new tissue (Clayton et al 2011). Among the above electro-conductive polymers, PPy is one of the foremost promising polymers due to its reasonable conductivity, redox properties, environmental stability and biocompatibility, which could be incorporated into other polymers’ matrix facilely through in situ polymerization (Sadeghi et al 2018; Kim et al 2018; Su et al 2019; Min et al 2018)
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