Abstract
This paper describes the processing and in vitro behavior of a poly(lactic acid) (PLA)‐fiber/hydroxyapatite (HA) composite sheet consisting of a knitted PLA‐fiber sheet and HA powder for bone tissue engineering. Type I collagen was used as a binding agent to combine the PLA fibers and the HA powder. Precipitate formation in Hanks′ balanced salt (HBS) solution was monitored to evaluate the in vitro apatite formation ability of the PLA‐fiber/HA composite sheet. Precipitate formation was observed on the surface of the PLA‐fiber/HA composite sheet after immersion in HBS solution for only 1 day, while no precipitate formation was observed on the PLA‐fiber sheet without HA as a control. In conclusion, a PLA‐fiber/HA composite sheet for use as a scaffold was successfully prepared. Within the limitations of this investigation, we confirmed that the PLA‐fiber/HA composite sheet has a high apatite formation activity compared with the PLA‐fiber sheet and represents a promising material for use as a scaffold.
Highlights
Hydroxyapatite (HA) [Ca10(PO4)6(OH)2] and related calcium phosphates are widely used as bone substitutes or scaffolds for bone tissue engineering because of their good bioactivities and osteoconductivities
The brittleness and insufficient strength of HA restrict its applications to physiologically nonload-bearing bone lesions. To overcome these shortcomings of HA, composites of HA and biodegradable polymers with high flexibility have been prepared as scaffold materials for bone tissue engineering [1, 2]
The appearance of the poly(lactic acid) (PLA)-fiber/HA composite sheet was observed under a fieldemission scanning electron microscope (FE-SEM) (JSM6340F; JEOL, Tokyo, Japan) at an acceleration voltage of 5 kV
Summary
Hydroxyapatite (HA) [Ca10(PO4)6(OH)2] and related calcium phosphates are widely used as bone substitutes or scaffolds for bone tissue engineering because of their good bioactivities and osteoconductivities. The brittleness and insufficient strength of HA restrict its applications to physiologically nonload-bearing bone lesions To overcome these shortcomings of HA, composites of HA and biodegradable polymers with high flexibility have been prepared as scaffold materials for bone tissue engineering [1, 2]. The fibrous forms of PLA, such as knitted and woven fabrics, are more preferable than the bulk material for bone tissue engineering, because these forms are highly porous and encourage the migration and adhesion of osteoblast-like cells With these backgrounds, the development of composites of PLA fibers and HA is attractive, since the advantageous properties of these two types of materials can be combined to better suit the biological and mechanical demands for biomedical uses. We examined the precipitate formation on the surface of the PLA-fiber/HA composite sheet in a simulated body fluid
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call
