Vertically aligned calcium phosphate nanoplates coated onto melt electrowritten 3D poly(ε-caprolactone) fibrous scaffolds for inhibiting biofilm formation

Abstract

Biofilm formation on implant surfaces often results in chronic infections, which may result in implant rejection and/or necessitate the need for implant removal or additional surgeries. Effective strategies are therefore required to prevent biofilm formation on biomaterials surfaces, especially during early post-implantation stage. This work aims to fabricate a 3D fibrous scaffold coated with vertically aligned nanoplates to mitigate bacterial attachment and inhibit biofilm formation. The high-aspect-ratio 3D highly porous (>94%) fibrous scaffolds made from medical-grade poly(ε-caprolactone) (PCL) were fabricated using the melt electrowritten (MEW) technique. The MEW fibrous scaffold was modified by directly coating a layer of calcium phosphate (CaP) via a biomimetic approach. CaP minerals showed a uniform distribution onto the PCL MEW fibrous scaffold with a nanoplate-like structure (width = 45 ± 17 nm, thickness = 8 ± 1.4 nm and 150 ± 24 nm length). The treated PCL fibrous scaffold exhibited the lowest attachment of Staphylococcus aureus and salivary biofilms after 24 and 48 h of culturing. The remarkable level of inhibition in bacterial attachment can be attributed to the exceptional combination of composition and surface characteristics displayed by the vertically aligned CaP nanoplates. The findings strongly support the potential of using vertically aligned CaP nanoplates as a coating on the 3D fibrous scaffold. This approach offers promising and straightforward antibacterial properties, effectively mitigating the risk of implant-associated infections without the need for antibacterial drugs.