Development of a Novel Bioactive Functionally Guided Tissue Graded Membrane for Periodontal Lesions

Abstract

Periodontal disorders are chronic inflammatory condition of the supporting structures of the tooth. Guided tissue regeneration (GTR) membranes have been used in the management of destructive forms of periodontal disease as a means of aiding regeneration of lost supporting tissues, such as alveolar bone, cementum, gingiva and periodontal ligament. In this study, individual layers of a functionally graded bioactive composite membrane were fabricated using the techniques of solvent casting, freeze gelation and electrospinning by incorporating Hydroxyapatite (HA) alongside Chitosan and using acetic acid as the primary solvent. The techniques were simple, time /energy efficient and reproducible resulting in novel non porous and porous scaffolds with potential for use in periodontal tissue regeneration. Scaffolds were characterised in terms of ultra structure morphology by scanning electron microscopy, physiochemical properties, water uptake, and degradation by weight loss, mechanical properties and biocompatibility. Microscopy revealed porous features and presence of hydroxyapatite was confirmed with Fourier Transform Infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy. Morphology of the pores varied with different solvents, which were affected by addition of HA. Biocompatibility studies were carried out using a human osteosarcoma cell line and human embryonic stem cell-derived mesenchymal progenitor cells. All tested scaffolds showed increasing cell viability over the tested culture period. In conclusion, solvent casting, freeze gelation and electrospinning were successfully used to fabricate scaffolds with different morphology and porosity. Future work will focus on incorporation of drug into the core layer and combining the surface and core layers to form a spatially designed functionally graded biodegradable membrane with the potential of being used for periodontal tissue regeneration.