Nanofibrous Silver-Coated Polymeric Scaffolds with Tunable Electrical Properties.

Adnan Memic,Nasim Annabi,Mohamed Abdel-wahab,Kamyar Moghaddam,Musab Aldhahri,Ali Khademhosseini,Mohamadmahdi Samandari,Ali Tamayol,Sidi Bencherif,Pooria Mostafalu

doi:10.3390/nano7030063

Abstract

Electrospun micro- and nanofibrous poly(glycerol sebacate)-poly(ε-caprolactone) (PGS-PCL) substrates have been extensively used as scaffolds for engineered tissues due to their desirable mechanical properties and their tunable degradability. In this study, we fabricated micro/nanofibrous scaffolds from a PGS-PCL composite using a standard electrospinning approach and then coated them with silver (Ag) using a custom radio frequency (RF) sputtering method. The Ag coating formed an electrically conductive layer around the fibers and decreased the pore size. The thickness of the Ag coating could be controlled, thereby tailoring the conductivity of the substrate. The flexible, stretchable patches formed excellent conformal contact with surrounding tissues and possessed excellent pattern-substrate fidelity. In vitro studies confirmed the platform’s biocompatibility and biodegradability. Finally, the potential controlled release of the Ag coating from the composite fibrous scaffolds could be beneficial for many clinical applications.

Highlights

Non-conventional electronics have recently attracted considerable attention in the interdisciplinary field of materials science, at the interface of biology and materials [1,2]
These constructs could act as platforms for designing bioresorbable and flexible electronics in the future
We introduced polymeric nanofibrous mats fabricated with radio frequency (RF) sputtering that were able to reproducibly deposit nanometer-scale Ag films on poly(glycerol sebacate)-poly(ε-caprolactone) (PGS-PCL) sheets

Summary

Introduction

Non-conventional electronics have recently attracted considerable attention in the interdisciplinary field of materials science, at the interface of biology and materials [1,2] These devices aim to combine cell-friendly materials such as polymers and electronic circuits, which could allow for low-cost, flexible, implantable, and disposable devices [3,4,5]. Facilitated by improvements in micro- and nanotechnologies, flexible electronics have been developed using patterned organic conductors and metals on the surfaces of advanced elastomeric substrates [1,12]. These elastomeric substrates have been made from both natural

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Conclusion