Electrically conductive nanofibrous scaffold composed of poly(ethylene glycol)-modified polypyrrole and poly(ε-caprolactone) for tissue engineering applications

Abstract

The aim of this study was to developing two novel nanofibrous scaffolds composed of poly(ethylene glycol)-modified polypyrrole [PEG-b-(PPy)4] and poly(ε-caprolactone) (PCL) for tissue engineering (TE) applications. For this purpose, pyrrole-functionalized PEGs AB4 macromonomers (PyPEGsM) were synthesized through the Steglich esterification of PEGs ends-caped tetraol [PEGs(OH)4] using pyrrole-2-carboxylic acid. These macromonomers were subsequently copolymerized with pyrrole monomer using chemical oxidation polymerization approach to produce PEGs-b-(PPy)4 copolymers. A solution of PCL and the synthesized PEGs-b-(PPy)4 copolymers were electrospun to fabricate uniform, conductive, and biocompatible nanofibrous scaffolds. The performances of the fabricated nanofibers as TE scaffolds were examined in terms of biological (biocompatibility and biodegradability) as well as physicochemical (electroactivity, conductivity, mechanical properties, and morphology) features. As the results, the fabricated electrospun nanofibers were found as proper scaffolds for use in TE applications that require electroactivity.