Preparation and Characterization of Gelatin–Poly(L-lactic) Acid/Poly(hydroxybutyrate-co-hydroxyvalerate) Composite Nanofibrous Scaffolds

Abstract

Poly(L-lactic) acid (PLLA) scaffolds, prepared by electrospinning technology, have been suggested for use in tissue engineering. They remain a challenge for application in biological fields due to PLLA's slow degradation and hydrophobic nature. We describe PLLA, PLLA/poly(hydroxybutyrate-co-hydroxyvalerate) (PHBV), and PLLA/PHBV/gelatin (Gt) composite nanofiberous scaffolds (Gt–PLLA/PHBV) electrospun by changing the electrospinning technology. The morphologies and hydrophilicity of these fibers were characterized by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and water contact angle measurement. The results showed that the addition of PHBV and Gt resulted in a decrease in the diameters and their distribution and greatly improved the hydrophilicity. The in-vitro degradation test indicated that GT–PLLA/PHBV composite scaffolds exhibited a faster degradation rate than PLLA and PLLA/PHBV scaffolds. Dermal fibroblasts viabilities on nanofibrous scaffolds were characterized by [3-(4, 5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2, 5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide] (MTT) assay and cell morphologies after 7 days culture. Results indicated that the GT–PLLA/PHBV composite nanofibers showed the highest bioactivity among the three scaffolds and increased with increasing time. The SEM images of cells/scaffolds composite materials showed the GT–PLLA/PHBV composite nanofibers enhanced the dermal fibroblasts's adhesion, proliferation, and spreading. It is suggested that the nanofibrous composite scaffolds of GT–PLLA/PHBV composites would be a promising candidate for tissue engineering scaffolds.