Surface-Functionalized Electrospun Nanofibers for Tissue Engineering

Abstract

Electrospun nanofibers have been investigated for applications in diverse fields of tissue engineering such as degradable polymers, bioactive inorganics and nano-composites/ hybrids. Poly (ε-caprolactone) (PCL), poly (L-lactide-co-3-caprolactone) (PLLACL) and poly(lactic co-glycolic acid) (PLGA) electrospun nanofibers have been reported to be an effective scaffold for tissue engineering and drug delivery due to high surface-to-volume ratio, tunable porosity, cell affinity, hydrophilicity and ease of surface functionalization. In particular, electrospun fibrous scaffolds prepared by coaxial and co-electrospinning showed promising applications in adhesion, proliferation, elongation, cell growth and apoptosis which is highly desired for human body applications in tissues such as bone, nerve, ligament along with bio-artificial bone graft mimicking and bio-mineralization. Different characterization methods such as FESEM, SEM, FTIR, XRD and wet chemical precipitation have been used for these studies. Furthermore, a wide range of materials suitable for extracellular matrix scaffold has been prepared by electrospinning technique. This review summarizes preparation methods, functionalization and characterization techniques of nanofibers by electrospinning and their wide application in the field of tissue engineering. In addition, challenges pertaining to cell infiltration, low-density growth and inadequate mechanical strength of nanofibers as well as suggestions to mitigate these problems are also pointed out.