Physicochemical and Osteoinductive Comparison of 2D Spin-Coated Films and 3D Porous Solvent-Cast Scaffolds of Poly(3-Hydroxybutyrate-co-3-Hydroxyvalerate) (PHBV)/ Polybutylene Adipate Terephthalate (PBAT) Blends.

Intervertebral disc (IVD) degeneration is one of the most important causes of lower back pain. Tissue engineering provides a new method for the experimental treatment of degenerative disc diseases. This study aims to develop a natural, acellular, 3D interconnected porous scaffold derived from the extracellular matrix (ECM) of nucleus pulposus. The nucleus pulposus (NP) was decellularized by sequential detergent-nuclease methods, including physical crushing, freeze-drying and cross-linking. These 3D porous scaffolds were fabricated with a high porosity of (81.28 ± 4.10)%, an ideal pore size with appropriate mechanical properties. Rabbit bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells (rBMSCs) were seeded and cultured on the scaffolds. And the mechanical tests showed the compressive elastic modulus of the scaffolds cultured for 4 weeks reached 0.12 MPa, which was better than that of the scaffolds cultured for 2 weeks (0.07 MPa) and that of the control group (0.04 MPa). Scanning electron microscopy (SEM), histological assays, molecular biology assays revealed that the scaffolds could provide an appropriate microstructure and environment for the adhesion, proliferation, migration and secretion of seeded cells in vitro. As assays like histology, immunohistochemistry and the real-time qRT-PCR showed, NP-like tissues were preliminarily formed. In conclusion, the 3D porous scaffold derived from NP ECM is a potential biomaterial for the regeneration of NP tissues.A natural, acellular, 3D interconnected porous scaffold derived from the extracellular matrix (ECM) of nucleus pulposus was developed by sequential detergent-nuclease and freeze-drying method, which can reduce the damage of protein activity to the minimum. It is very similar to the composition and internal environment of the natural nucleus pulposus, because it derived from the natural nucleus pulposus. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM), histological assays, molecular biology assays revealed that the scaffolds could provide an appropriate microstructure and environment for the adhesion, proliferation, migration, and secretion of seeded cells in vitro.

Evaluation of human amnion denuded derived mesenchymal stem cell on 3D porous hydroxyapatite composite scaffolds for osteogenic differentiation: Prolonged in vitro study

Highly porous three‐dimensional (3D) scaffolds can mimic the lobular structure of a human liver where hepatocytes are organized. However, 3D scaffolds with uniformly porous and oriented structures are challenging to fabricate without cross‐linking agents. Herein, this work presents a Pickering emulsion‐induced interface approach to construct aligned porous scaffolds for 3D cell cultures through the combined use of surface‐carboxylated cellulose nanofibers and chitosan nanofibers as stabilizers, and freezing/lyophilization to remove the oil phase. The obtained Pickering emulsions exhibit long‐term stability and their droplet sizes are tunable from 2.7 to 10.2 µm. Assembly at the oil–water interface can be modulated by controlling the NaCl dosage and oil phase proportion, resulting in porous foams with tunable porosity and versatile architectures as an in vitro alternative to the native liver microenvironment. The foams are noncytotoxic, confirmed using mouse fibroblast NIH/3T3 cells, and the cells grow both on the surface and in the internal structure of the foam. Notably, the 3D porous scaffolds are favorable microenvironments for the formation of human liver carcinoma HepG2 spheroidal cells, which exhibit liver‐like activity. This strategy based on Pickering emulsion templating provides a new avenue for constructing bioadaptive 3D scaffolds, specifically all‐biomass porous foams, for tissue engineering.

Polycaprolactone (PCL) is a widely utilized bioresorbable polymer in tissue engineering applications. However, the absence of intrinsic functional groups in the polymer backbone necessitates the incorporation of functional chemistries to enable the further addition of bioactive molecules to PCL-based surfaces and scaffolds. The current study aimed to incorporate two different functional groups, amine and carboxylate, first on two-dimensional (2D) spin-coated PCL films and, thereafter, throughout all surfaces within three-dimensional (3D) porous PCL-based scaffolds, produced using the thermally induced phase separation (TIPS) method, but in a spatially separated manner. Specifically, gamma irradiation induced grafting of acrylic acid (AA) and 2-aminoethyl methacrylate hydrochloride (AEMA) onto PCL was performed in selected solvents and the resulting substrates were characterized using X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), atomic force microscopy (AFM), and contact angle measurements to determine the surface free energy. Results demonstrated that stepwise graft copolymerization of AEMA and AA allows the fabrication of dual-functional surfaces, with chemistry depending on the order of grafting of the two monomers. In addition, 3D scaffolds could be decorated exclusively with carboxylate groups in the interior, while the outer surface displayed dual-functionality. This simple surface modification methodology, with the ability to create spatially separated surface functional groups throughout 3D porous scaffolds post their fabrication, has the potential to be applied to many current and future scaffold systems being investigated in the field of tissue engineering.

Computational modeling of flow-induced shear stresses within 3D salt-leached porous scaffolds imaged via micro-CT

Tissue engineering is an interdisciplinary field that focuses on restoring and repairing tissues or organs. Cells, scaffolds, and biomolecules are recognized as three main components of tissue engineering. Solid freeform fabrication (SFF) technology is required to fabricate three-dimensional (3D) porous scaffolds to provide a 3D environment for cellular activity. SFF technology is especially advantageous for achieving a fully interconnected, porous scaffold. Bone morphogenic protein-2 (BMP-2), an important biomolecule, is widely used in bone tissue engineering to enhance bone regeneration activity. However, methods for the direct incorporation of intact BMP-2 within 3D scaffolds are rare. In this work, 3D porous scaffolds with poly(lactic-co-glycolic acid) chemically grafted hyaluronic acid (HA-PLGA), in which intact BMP-2 was directly encapsulated, were successfully fabricated using SFF technology. BMP-2 was previously protected by poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG), and the BMP-2/PEG complex was incorporated in HA-PLGA using an organic solvent. The HAPLGA/PEG/BMP-2 mixture was dissolved in chloroform and deposited via a multi-head deposition system (MHDS), one type of SFF technology, to fabricate a scaffold for tissue engineering. An additional air blower system and suction were installed in the MHDS for the solvent-based fabrication method. An in vitro evaluation of BMP-2 release was conducted, and prolonged release of intact BMP-2, for up to 28 days, was confirmed. After confirmation of advanced proliferation of pre osteoblasts, a superior differentiation effect of the HA-PLGA/PEG/BMP-2 scaffold was validated by measuring high expression levels of bone-specific markers, such as alkaline phosphatase (ALP) and osteocalcin (OC). We show that our solvent-based fabrication is a non-toxic method for restoring cellular activity. Moreover, the HAPLGA/PEG/BMP-2 scaffold was effective for bone regeneration.

Preparation of three-dimensional (3D) porous scaffolds from synthetic polymers is a challenge to most laboratories conducting biomedical research. Here, we present a handy and cost-effective method to fabricate polymeric hydrogel and porous scaffolds using poly(lactic-co-glycolic) acid (PLGA) or polycaprolactone (PCL). Breast cancer cells grown on 3D polymeric scaffolds exhibited distinct survival, morphology, and proliferation compared to those on 2D polymeric surfaces. Mammary epithelial cells cultured on PLGA- or PCL-coated slides expressed extracellular matrix (ECM) proteins and their receptors. Estrogen receptor- (ER-) positive T47D breast cancer cells are less sensitive to 4-hydroxytamoxifen (4-HT) treatment when cultured on the 3D porous scaffolds than in 2D cultures. Finally, cancer cell-laden polymeric scaffolds support consistent tumor formation in animals and biomarker expression as seen in human native tumors. Our data suggest that the porous synthetic polymer scaffolds satisfy the basic requirements for 3D tissue cultures both in vitro and in vivo. The scaffolding technology has appealing potentials to be applied in anticancer drug screening for a better control of the progression of human cancers.

Lithium metal is the most promising candidate for a high-capacity anode in Li-ion batteries due to the highest theoretical specific capacity (3,860 mAh g-1) and the lowest redox potential (-3.04 V vs S.H.E.) [1]. However, the Li metal anode (LMA) is still challenging to be used practically due to mossy-like dendrite formation, dead Li growth, and infinite volume expansion resulting in safety hazards. Various approaches have been proposed to suppress Li dendrite growth, such as constructing an artificial solid electrolyte layer (ASEI) [2], modifying organic electrolyte [3], preparing lithiophilic substrates [4], and using a 3D scaffold [5].Among them, introducing a 3D scaffold is one effective method to prevent Li dendrite growth due to its high surface area to greatly reduce low local current density, based on Sand’s formula [6]. Furthermore, the 3D scaffold can accommodate Li metals inside a porous structure, reducing the cell volume expansion. In fact, owing to the advantages of a 3D scaffold, a variety of 3D scaffolds based on Cu [5], Ni [7], and carbon [8] have been reported over the past several years. However, the lithium metal is preferentially deposited on the top of the 3D scaffold since the top of the bare 3D scaffolds has low diffusion resistance than the bottom of the scaffold due to the short diffusion length. As one of the solutions, introducing lithiophilic materials to the bottom of the 3D scaffold can be regarded as an effective way to induce Li nucleation inside the porous scaffold [9]. However, since morphological properties like porosity, pore size, and thickness also affect the Li deposition behaviors inside the 3D scaffold [9, 10], both factors should be considered simultaneously.Here, we propose a rational design of a 3D porous scaffold for dendrite-free LMA, adopting lithiophilic silver on a current collector. Specifically, we suggest optimal structural properties of 3D scaffolds, such as porosity, pore size, and thickness to induce the Li nucleation inside the bottom of the current collector, thereby achieving inner space Li deposition. We deposited Ag nanoparticles with 20 nm evaporation thickness by a thermal evaporation method on the commercial copper foils. (thickness ≈ 25 µm). The 3D scaffold was obtained by simple mixing and casting processes. The Cu nanoparticles (Cu NPs), silica particles, and PVdF binder were added to PP bottles at a weight ratio of 1:1:0.1, and the mixture was mixed by a high-energy ball mill. A mixed sample was cast on the copper foil and Ag coated copper foil. Cu NPs were welded by heating at 350 ℃ in a H2/Ar flow (1:1=v:v) for 2h. Afterward, silica particles were etched with 5% hydrofluoric acid (aq). As a result, porous copper scaffold (pCu) and Ag coated porous copper scaffold (AgpCu) were fabricated for Li metal anodes.The SEM images of pCu are shown in Fig. 1a, b, and c from which we can see the uniformly distributed sphere-like pore generated through the etching of silica particles. The average diameter of the formed pore is around 1 µm, which is the same as the size of silica used in the experiment. Fig. 1c presents a cross-sectional SEM image of a pCu with a thickness of ~80 µm.The deposited Li morphology is investigated by optical and SEM images in Fig. 2. When Li is deposited at 0.5 mA cm-2 for 4 mAh cm-2, shiny Li is observed on the top of the pCu in optical images (Fig. 2a). In contrast with pCu, AgpCu shows a clean brown optical image on the top without Li metals in Fig. 2c. In addition, the SEM images of Fig. 2b and d shows the morphologies of Li deposits Li on the pCu and AgpCu, respectively, indicating that a silver inside layer in AgpCu effectively induces inner deposition of Li.

Reprogramming somatic cells into a pluripotent state has been widely investigated in two-dimensional (2D) systems but not described in the more biologically faithful three-dimensional (3D) scaffolds. Here, we devise a 3D porous tissue engineering scaffold that could achieve successful and efficient induction of pluripotency. To construct this 3D scaffold, nonviral hybrid nanoparticles were fabricated beforehand by employing calcium phosphate and cationized Pleurotus eryngii polysaccharide to codeliver plasmids OCT4, SOX2, KLF4 ,and C-MYC (pOSKM). These hybrid nanoparticles were then loaded into a 3D porous collagen scaffold to obtain the so-called pOSKM-activated 3D scaffold. This 3D scaffold could reprogram human umbilical cord mesenchymal stem cells (HUMSCs) into a pluripotent state, generating 3D cell spheres which showed positive expression of pluripotency markers in the 3D scaffolds and tightly packed colonies when transferred to 2D feeder layers. Besides sharing similar morphology, epigenetic modification, and expression of pluripotency genes with the embryonic stem cells, the 3D system-generated colonies could also be expanded on feeder layers for more than 20 passages, indicating the successful establishment of stable induced pluripotent stem cell (iPSC) lines. Our findings represent a first employment of porous 3D scaffolds to achieve successful reprogramming via a one-time transfection, offering a safe, simple, and effective alternative strategy for iPSC generation.

Mass transfer restrictions of scaffolds are currently hindering the development of three-dimensional (3D), clinically viable, and tissue-engineered constructs. For this situation, a 3D poly(lactide-co-glycolide)/hydroxyapatite porous scaffold, which was very favorable for the transfer of nutrients to and waste products from the cells in the pores, was developed in this study. The 3D scaffold had an innovative structure, including macropores with diameters of 300–450 μm for cell ingrowth and microchannels with diameters of 2–4 μm for nutrition and waste exchange. The mechanical strength in wet state was strong enough to offer structural support. The typical structure was more beneficial for the attachment, proliferation, and differentiation of rabbit bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells (rBMSCs). The alkaline phosphatase (ALP) activity and calcium (Ca) deposition were evaluated on the differentiation of rBMSCs, and the results indicated that the microchannel structure was very favorable for differentiating rBMSCs into maturing osteoblasts. For repairing rabbit radius defects in vivo, there was rapid healing in the defects treated with the 3D porous scaffold with microchannels, where the bridging by a large bony callus was observed at 12 weeks post-surgery. Based on the results, the 3D porous scaffold with microchannels was a promising candidate for bone defect repair.

Polymeric porous 3D scaffold plays an important role in culturing mammalian cells asex vivomodel. However, the scaffold used is ineffective due to its structural and cell acceptability weaknesses. Therefore, this research attempts to overcome the weaknesses by using carrageenan from red seaweedKappaphycus alvareziias an alternative infused material (filler) of poly(3-hydroxybutyrate-co-3-hydroxyvalerate) (PHBV) porous 3D scaffold. The 3D scaffold was conventionally fabricated using the solvent-casting particulate-leaching (SCPL) method. Carrageenan was later infused into 3D porous scaffolds under vacuum pressure and freeze-drying process. Five carrageenan concentrations were prepared and its physicochemical properties such as pH and viscosity were carried out on each concentration to determine the best solutions to produce a new composite 3D structure. The preliminary result shows that carrageenan concentrations of 2, 4, and 6% (w/v) were considered the best solutions for the infusion process due to its stable rheology properties. The pH and viscosity profiles of three selected carrageenan solutions were exhibited in the range of 9.00–9.20 and 0.047–1.144 Pa·s, respectively. Moreover, the incorporated carrageenan gel fraction was in the range of 4.30% to 14.95% (w/w) which was determined by gravimetric analysis and dye staining method (visual assessment). The well-infused carrageenan 3D scaffold was further characterized based on its internal morphology and degradability study. The vertical cross-sections of the scaffolds revealed homogeneous accumulation of dried gelatinous carrageenan which was covered throughout its pores wall. The degradation rate (K) of the carrageenan infused 3D scaffold was between0.01±1.66(mg/day) and0.03±3.23(mg/day). The higher the carrageenan concentration used, the faster the degradation rate occurring (p<0.05). The 3D infused scaffold of 4% (w/v) carrageenan concentration (S2) produced a moderate degradation rate of0.02±1.55(mg/day) with a sustained structural integrity up to 28 days. The carrageenan infused scaffold of 4% (w/v) was demonstrated to be the best 3D structure for a long-term cell culture (>2 weeks). In conclusion, the usage of carrageenan as a composite material exhibits its great potential to be used in tissue engineering application and 3D cell culture model.

A combinatorial variation in surface chemistry and pore size of three-dimensional porous poly(ε-caprolactone) scaffolds modulates the behaviors of mesenchymal stem cells

Three dimensional (3D) channel networks are the key to promise the uniform distribution of nutrients inside 3D hepatic tissue engineering scaffolds and prompt elimination of metabolic products out of the scaffolds. 3D chitosan/gelatin porous scaffolds with predefined internal channels were fabricated and a combination of light microscope, laser confocal microscopy and micro‐CT were employed to characterize the structure of porous scaffolds. In order to evaluate the flow field distribution inside the micro‐structured 3D scaffolds, a computer reconstructing method based on Micro‐CT was proposed. According to this evaluating method, a contrast between 3D porous scaffolds with and without predefined internal channels was also performed to assess scaffolds’ fluid characters. Results showed that the internal channel of the 3D scaffolds formed the 3D fluid channel network; the uniformity of flow field distribution of the scaffolds fabricated in this paper was better than the simple porous scaffold without micro‐fluid channels.

3D lithium metal embedded within lithiophilic porous matrix for stable lithium metal batteries

Polymer/metal composite 3D porous bone tissue engineering scaffolds fabricated by additive manufacturing techniques: A review