Fabrication of Tissue Engineering Scaffold from Hydroxyapatite/Alginate Composite

Abstract

Scaffolds for bone tissue engineering must meet the functional requirements, porosity, biocompatibility, and biodegradability. In this study, hydroxyapatite was prepared by wet chemical method and incorporated into the alginate gel solution to improve both the mechanical and cell-attachment properties of the scaffolds. Next, composite scaffolds were fabricated from hydroxyapatite/alginate with different weight ratios by freeze drying method and then some of them coated with triblock copolymer and compared with others. Microstructure observation with SEM suggests the formation of about 50 micrometer size porous structure and interconnected porosity. Then, human mesenchymal stem cells were cultured on the composite scaffolds. Cells adhesion to the scaffolds was observed after three days by DAPI fluorescence microscopy in which more cells adhesion to the coated scaffolds and cells diffusion into the pores are visible. Also, cell adhesion within the structure was observed by SEM in which showed cell attachment was well in depth which confirms DAPI results. These results suggest that the triblock-coated HA/Alg porous scaffolds could provide enhanced cell adhesion and proliferation which may be a promising approach for bone tissue-engineering applications.