Synergistic properties of polysuccinimide/poly(lactic acid) co-electrospun and blended-electrospun nanofibers

Abstract

One of the greatest challenges in tissue engineering and tissue scaffold development is tissue integration. If cells cannot adhere, infiltrate, and migrate through the implant, the immune system will develop a fibrous capsule around it, isolating it, and rendering it useless. To solve this complex issue, researchers directed their attention towards blend and composite materials. Poly(lactic acid) PLA is a popular polymer used for biomedical applications having several advantages such biocompatibility, chemical stability, and cost-effectiveness. Concurrently, hydrophobicity, poor cell adhesion, and slow biodegradation limit application possibilities. On the other hand, polysuccinimide (PSI) is versatile polymer with excellent cell adhesion, biocompatibility, and a fast biodegradation. The objective of this work is to develop electrospun meshes composed of a fast (PSI) and slow (PLA) degrading component. The fabricated blend-electrospun meshes have a pronounced 3D structure compared to the co-electrospun meshes. Average fibre diameters were 580 ± 140 and 650 ± 110 nm for the co-electrospun and blend-electrospun meshes then after cross-linking the meshes diameters increased to 890 ± 300 and 750 ± 150 nm respectively. Both meshes exhibited increased hydrophilicity compared to pure PLA meshes (125°) especially after the cross-linking (Co-spun: 119°, Blend-spun: 78°). The co-electrospun PSI/PLA demonstrated an increased specific loading capacity suggesting a synergistic relationship between the two polymer fibres. In contrast however, the blend mesh performed poorly. The in vitro degradation assessment confirmed that the PSI component degrades in under a week while the PLA component of the composite was still stable even after 4 weeks. To conclude, both meshes have their own advantages which could be exploited for different applications.