Composite Fibrous Membranes Research Articles

Graphene oxide-polydopamine loaded uniform fibrous membranes via robust multi-channel microfluidic-electrospinning method

The rapid development of modern industries has caused serious water pollution such as dyes wastewater, which brings environmental problems and threatens human health. Thus, methods allowing efficient dyes removal from wastewater are substantially desirable. In this work, we fabricated graphene oxide-polydopamine (GO-PDA) by microfluidics, which enables rapid synthesis of products with excellent uniformity due to the precise control of reaction conditions. In addition, the GO-PDA/ thermoplastic polyurethane (GO-PDA/TPU) composite fibrous membrane was prepared in a high-efficiency manner by microfluidic electrospinning with a four-channel chip. Interestingly, GO-PDA not only improves the mechanical strength and hydrophilicity of the composite fibrous membrane, but also endows the membrane with efficient dye adsorption and separation capacity both for single and mixed dyes. It has been proved that the GO-PDA/TPU composite fibrous membrane exhibits selectivity towards cationic dyes, where the removal efficiency is up to 99 wt%. Moreover, the fibrous membrane could be utilized in a continuous and cyclic manner, which still maintains a high adsorption rate (>95 wt%) after 5 recycling, illustrating outstanding durability and reusability. This work proposes an efficient GO-PDA/TPU composite fibrous membrane towards selective adsorption of cationic dyes, which is of great significance in wastewater purification.

Polyphenol assisted assembly of prussian blue analogs nanocrystals decorated 3D GO functional microspheres for polymer fiber bifunctional membrane with high oil-water emulsion permeability and powerful photocatalytic self-cleaning ability

Due to the intricate components of wastewater and physical stacking of graphene oxide (GO), the current GO membranes exhibit the fatal defects of low porosity and poor anti-fouling ability. Herein, a three dimensional (3D) FeCo-PBA@GO functional microsphere was constructed via anchoring GO nanosheets onto hard template of 3D polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA) microsphere driven by hydrogen bond and van der Waals force. On this basis, the Prussian blue analogs nanocrystals (FeCo-PBA) grew in situ on such functional microsphere and further assembled onto porous polyacrylonitrile (PAN) fiber mat through the tannic acid assisted spraying technique, resulting in highly permeable and photocatalytic self-cleaning FeCo-PBA@GO/PAN fibrous composite membrane. Interestingly, the unique 3D nanostructure of FeCo-PBA@GO microsphere arranging on membrane surface effectively prevented the dense physical stacking of GO nanosheets and increased the oil repellence property, thereby regulating the water channel and breaking through permeability limitation of membrane. As a result, the composite membrane exhibited superior separation fluxes (˃3029 L m−2 h−1) for different oil/water (O/W) emulsions, with rejection rate above 99.0 %. Owing to rich active sites and enhanced electron/mass transport property of FeCo-PBA functional layer, the composite membrane could effectively degrade various dyes by peroxymonosulfate (PMS) activation, with the degradation efficiency of 93.1–96.9 % within 40 min and demonstrated favorable antifouling and photocatalytic self-cleaning ability after cycling separation of O/W emulsion. In addition, the generated multiple reactive oxygen species and photocatalytic mechanism were proposed. This work provides a versatile pathway to prepare multifunctional GO advanced membranes for large-scale treatment of complex emulsified oily wastewater.

Electrospun Silicon Dioxide/poly(vinylidene fluoride) Nanofibrous Membrane Comprising a Skin Multicore-Shell Nanostructure as a New High-Heat-Resistant Separator for Lithium-Ion Polymer Batteries.

Porous silicon dioxide (SiO2)/poly(vinylidene fluoride) (PVdF), SiO2/PVdF, and fibrous composite membranes were prepared by electrospinning a blend solution of a SiO2 sol-gel/PVdF. The nanofibers of the SiO2/PVdF (3/7 wt. ratio) blend comprised skin and nanofibrillar structures which were obtained from the SiO2 component. The thickness of the SiO2 skin layer comprising a thin skin layer could be readily tuned depending on the weight proportions of SiO2 and PVdF. The composite membrane exhibited a low thermal shrinkage of ~3% for 2 h at 200 °C. In the prototype cell comprising the composite membrane, the alternating current impedance increased rapidly at ~225 °C, and the open-circuit voltage steeply decreased at ~170 °C, almost becoming 0 V at ~180 °C. After being exposed at temperatures of >270 °C, its three-dimensional network structure was maintained without the closure of the pore structure by a melt-down of the membrane.

Plasma Surface Treatment and Application of Polyvinyl Alcohol/Polylactic Acid Electrospun Fibrous Hemostatic Membrane

In this study, an improved PVA/PLA fibrous hemostatic membrane was prepared by electrospinning technology combined with air plasma modification. The plasma treatment was used to modify PLA to enhance the interlayer bonding between the PVA and PLA fibrous membranes first, then modify the PVA to improve the hemostatic capacity. The surfaces of the PLA and PVA were oxidized after air plasma treatment, the fibrous diameter was reduced, and roughness was increased. Plasma treatment enhanced the interfacial bond strength of PLA/PVA composite fibrous membrane, and PLA acted as a good mechanical support. Plasma-treated PVA/PLA composite membranes showed an increasing liquid-enrichment capacity of 350% and shortened the coagulation time to 258 s. The hemostatic model of the liver showed that the hemostatic ability of plasma-treated PVA/PLA composite membranes was enhanced by 79% compared to untreated PVA membranes, with a slight improvement over commercially available collagen. The results showed that the plasma-treated PVA/PLA fibers were able to achieve more effective hemostasis, which provides a new strategy for improving the hemostatic performance of hemostatic materials.

Preparing gelatin-containing polycaprolactone / polylactic acid nanofibrous membranes for periodontal tissue regeneration using side-by-side electrospinning technology.

Electrospinning technology has recently attracted increased attention in the biomedical field, and preparing various cellulose nanofibril membranes for periodontal tissue regeneration has unique advantages. However, the characteristics of using a single material tend to make it challenging to satisfy the requirements for a periodontal barrier film, and the production of composite fibrous membranes frequently impacts the quality of the final fiber membrane due to the influence of miscibility between different materials. In this study, nanofibrous membranes composed of polylactic acid (PLA) and polycaprolactone (PCL) fibers were fabricated using side-by-side electrospinning. Different concentrations of gelatin were added to the fiber membranes to improve their hydrophilic properties. The morphological structure of the different films as well as their composition, wettability and mechanical characteristics were examined. The results show that PCL/PLA dual-fibrous composite membranes with an appropriate amount of gelatin ensures sufficient mechanical strength while obtaining improved hydrophilic properties. The viability of L929 fibroblasts was evaluated using CCK-8 assays, and cell adhesion on the scaffolds was confirmed by scanning electron microscopy and by immunofluorescence assays. The results demonstrated that none of the fibrous membranes were toxic to cells and the addition of gelatin improved cell adhesion to those membranes. Based on our findings, adding 30% gelatin to the membrane may be the most appropriate content for periodontal tissue regeneration, considering the scaffold's mechanical qualities, hydrophilic properties and biocompatibility. In addition, the PCL-gelatin/PLA-gelatin dual-fibrous membranes prepared using side-by-side electrospinning technology have potential applications for tissue engineering.

Polylactic acid/ zinc oxide decorated multi-wall carbon nanotubes fibrous membranes and their applications in oil-water separation

The frequent occurrence of oil spills and oily wastewater leakage has increased the demand for oil-water separation materials with good hydrophobicity. Herein, a novel polylactic acid composite fibrous membrane is reported to address this problem. The zinc oxide decorated multi-wall carbon nanotubes were synthesized via the hydrothermal reaction and composited with polylactic acid to prepare a series of fibrous membranes via electrospinning. The wetting behavior of the prepared fibrous membranes conformed to Cassie's equation, proving that the introduced zinc oxide-decorated multi-wall carbon nanotubes enhanced the surface roughness of the prepared fibrous membranes. Such rough surfaces of the fibrous membranes have enhanced the hydrophobicity and increased the water contact angle to 138.5° (in air) and 159.3° (under oil), respectively. The oil uptake of the prepared fibrous membranes has reached 73.2 g/g. The prepared fibrous membrane was able to absorb oil on the water surface, underwater, or emulsion. Therefore, the prepared polylactic acid/zinc oxide-decorated multi-wall carbon nanotubes fibrous membrane can be a good candidate material for treating oily wastewater.

Cellulose acetate-based composite fibrous membrane with asymmetric wettability for directional water transport and high-flux oil–water separation

Cellulose acetate-based composite fibrous membrane with asymmetric wettability for directional water transport and high-flux oil–water separation

Rational nanoarchitectonics of polypyrrole/graphene/polyimide composite fibrous membranes with enhanced electrochemical performance as self-supporting flexible electrodes for supercapacitors

Constructing self-supporting electrodes with the combination of excellent flexibility and superior electrochemical properties is essential to the development of high-performance supercapacitors for flexible electronics and wearable devices. Herein, a highly flexible polypyrrole/reduced graphene oxide/modified-polyimide composite fibrous membranes (PPy/RGO/M-PI CFMs) are prepared via electrostatic self-assembly of reduced graphene oxide (RGO) and in-situ deposition of polypyrrole onto SnCl2-modified polyimide electrospun fibrous membranes (M-PI FMs). M-PI FMs ensure rich pore structure and remarkable flexible properties, the electronic conductivity of the sample is greatly promoted by RGO, and polypyrrole (PPy) provide the capability of high redox pseudo capacitive charge storage for the electrode. Benefiting from the compact assembly of RGO and the uniform deposition of polypyrrole on the fiber surface of the M-PI FMs, the synthesized PPy/RGO/M-PI CFMs have a remarkable area capacitance of 1437.1 mF cm−2, a long cycle life of 84.9 % retention over 5000 cycles, and outstanding mechanical stability. And the assembled symmetric supercapacitor with PPy/RGO/M-PI CFMs deliver an exceptional area capacitance of 363.1 mF cm−2, superior energy density of 32.3 μWh cm−2 and 77.6 % capacitance retention after 5000 cycles. Therefore, this flexible and free-standing PPy/RGO/M-PI CFMs can be regarded as a promising candidate for flexible supercapacitor electrodes.

Flexible crystalline zinc doped silica nanofibers with superior wettability and remediation for oily wastewater

Construction of ceramic fibrous membranes with good mechanical property and separation performance for the remediation of surfactant stabilized emulsions at high-temperature or complex environment is on great demand, yet still a challenge. Herein, the zinc ions doped silica (ZSO) nanofibrous membranes with expectable flexibility and superior selective wettability is prepared via a facile sol–gel electrospinning technique. The doping of zinc ions in silica nanofibers induced the obvious variation in crystalline and surface roughness structure, which were directly relevant to the mechanical properties and wettability of the resultant ZSO nanofibrous membranes. The advantageous features favored the ZSO membranes with excellent surfactant stabilized oil-in-water emulsion separation performance, including the separation efficiency of >98 %, the permeation flux of ∼3900 L m−2 h−1 driven by gravity, outstanding chemical stability, and good reusability within 10 cycles. In addition, the rationally designed micro-/nano-structured composite ceramic fibrous membranes displayed significant improvements on structural stability, mechanical property, and prominent separation performance towards emulsions at high temperature (∼95 °C) and nanoparticle-containing wastewater. The clarification of the relationship among crystalline structure, surface roughness, mechanical properties, and application performance would facilitate the fabrication of filtration materials used in the fields of oil-spill cleanup, seawater destination, and wastewater remediation.

Simulation of the bone remodelling microenvironment by calcium compound-loaded hydrogel fibrous membranes for in situ bone regeneration.

The endowment of guided bone regeneration (GBR) membranes with the ability to activate the endogenous regenerative capability of bone to regenerate bone defects is of clinical significance. Herein we explored the preparation of the calcium compound (CC) (calcium sulfate (CaSL), calcium hydrophosphate (CaHP), or tricalcium phosphate (TCaP)) loaded ultrathin silk fibroin (SF)/gelatin (G) fibre membranes via electrospinning as the GBR membranes to regenerate the calvarial bone defects. The in vitro experiments demonstrated that the CaSL-loaded ultrathin fibrous membranes could simulate optimally the bone remodelling microenvironment in comparison with the CaHP- and TCaP-loaded fibrous membranes, displaying the highest activity to regulate the migration, proliferation, and differentiation of mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs). Also, the in vivo experiments demonstrated that the CaSL-loaded fibrous membranes presented the highest intrinsic osteoinduction to guide in situ regeneration of bone. Furthermore, the in vivo experiments demonstrated that the as-prepared composite fibrous membranes possessed good degradability. In summary, our results suggested that the CaSL-loaded fibrous membranes with high intrinsic osteoinduction and good degradability have potential to translate into clinical practice.

Beyond Symmetry: Exploring Asymmetric Electrospun Nanofiber Membranes for Liquid Separation

AbstractComposite membranes with asymmetric traits have gained attention in liquid separation, featuring gradient chemical and physical attributes that align or oppose mass transfer direction. Chemically asymmetric configurations harness internal driving forces to heighten separation efficiency, rendering them an appealing option for heightened separation efficiency and fouling prevention. Concurrently, the internal hierarchical structure differences within composite membranes—such as fiber‐based structural adjustments and the gradient density of functional layers—yield the dual benefits of effective liquid repelling and heightened transport efficiency. Unlike conventional phase‐change methods, electrospinning technology possesses advantages in constructing and governing composite fibrous membrane materials with asymmetric chemistry and hierarchical structures, driven by its adaptable stacking methodologies. Notably, the inherent pore structure of electrospun nanofibrous membranes emerges as a proven solution for minimizing transport resistance. In recent times, interest has surged in electrospun nanofibrous membranes endowed with internal asymmetric properties. However, the spotlight has predominantly graced Janus membranes, spotlighting opposite wettability on different sides, leaving other facets of asymmetric membrane enhancement somewhat underexplored. This comprehensive work unveils recent strides in design, fabrication, facilitated transport mechanisms, and real‐world liquid separation applications, all under the aegis of electrospun nanofiber membranes, each endowed with distinct asymmetric properties.

A Novel Polyvinylidene Fluoride/Keratin Electret Filter With Comprehensive Performance and High-Efficiency PM0.3 Removal

Effective and environmentally friendly air filters to preserve public health are essential given the particle matter pollution epidemic that has permanently damaged human health. This study used blending spinning to create a unique polyvinylidene fluoride/keratin electret filter with reliable PM0.3 reduction and comprehensive features. More specifically, adding keratin derived from natural wool significantly increased composite fibrous membranes’ pore structure and surface charge. Keratin and polyvinylidene fluoride work together synergistically to produce a fiber membrane that exhibits good filtration performance with a quality factor of 0.04662 /Pa, a low pressure drop of 127 Pa, and a high particle removal capacity of 99.731%. The development of this electret material provides a new approach for the design of environmentally friendly air filters for efficient removal of PM0.3.

Monitoring and kinetic study of alkaline hydrolysis of polylactic acid fibrous membrane via aggregation-induced emission (AIE) technique

Hydrolysis mechanism of polylactic acid (PLA) materials has been the focus of PLA material research. Herein, we report a novel method for monitoring the hydrolysis of PLA. Tetraphenylene aldehyde (TPEA) with aggregation induced emission (AIE) property was synthesized as a fluorescence probe for being introduced into PLA-base fibrous membrane via electrospinning. Then, the obtained TPEA/PLA composite fibrous membrane was hydrolyzed in an aqueous environment with controllable temperature and pH. The detection of PLA hydrolysis was achieved by examining the fluorescence intensity changes caused by the release of TPEA during the hydrolysis. On the basis of the structure study of the prepared fibrous membranes, this study investigated the changes in fluorescence intensity of the degradation environment during the hydrolysis process. The correlation between fluorescence and PLA hydrolysis was investigated with the kinetic research to prove the feasibility of monitoring PLA hydrolysis via AIE technique.

Design of photocatalytic self-cleaning poly (arylene ether nitrile)/nitrogen-doped Bi2O2CO3 composite membrane for emulsified oily wastewater purification

Membrane separation technique offers unique advantages for treating the emulsified oily wastewater with the oil droplet diameter less than 20 µm. However, the complicated membrane fouling originating from oils and soluble matters pose the huge challenges to membrane separation technique, which has stimulated the development of advanced membrane materials. Herein, we reported the photocatalytic and super-wetting poly (arylene ether nitrile) (PEN) fibrous composite membrane with high permeability and enhanced anti-fouling ability. The nitrogen-doped Bi2O2CO3 (N-Bi2O2CO3) was prepared by low-temperature chemical modification method and modified by dopamine (DA)-polyethyleneimine (PEI), which was further self-assembled on porous PEN support backbone. The hydrophilicity provided by the cross-linking reaction between PDA and PEI and micro-/nano- rough surface constructed by the flower-like N-Bi2O2CO3 contributed to the super wetting properties (WCA=0°, UOCA>150°), which imparted the membrane with ultra-low oil adhesion. In particular, the arrangement of flower-like N-Bi2O2CO3 effectively regulated the water channel of membrane, further increasing the permeate flux. Therefore, the fibrous composite membranes showed superior separation flux (632.79–762.81 L·m−2·h−1) and separation efficiency (>99.16%) for various oil-in-water emulsions, even under harsh conditions (90 ℃ and 2 M NaCl solution). More importantly, the N-Bi2O2CO3 rendered the membrane excellent degradation rates for various dyes (MO: 95.53%, MeB: 96.40%, CV: 96.45%, CR: 87.14%), achieving favorable photocatalytic self-cleaning ability. This work opens an alternative strategy to fabricate fibrous composite membrane with synergistically enhanced anti-fouling for the treating complicated emulsified oily wastewater in petrochemical industry.

Regulation of TiO2 @PVDF piezoelectric nanofiber membranes on osteogenic differentiation of mesenchymal stem cells

Bioactive piezoelectric materials with similar properties as natural bone tissue with piezoelectricity have been explored for bone repair. Polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) is among the most studied piezoelectric polymers and has been manifested to promote osteogenic differentiation. Unfortunately, in the practical application of bone repair, bioactive materials as implants have faced poor electrical signal stability and poor modulation of bone regeneration, which have seriously hindered their further development. Here, we fabricated a composite piezoelectric fibrous membrane with titanium dioxide (TiO2) nanoparticles and PVDF (TiO2 @PVDF) for cellular osteogenic differentiation. The expression quantity of the gene osteocalcin (OCN) with the piezoelectric fibrous membrane was 49 times and 6 times higher than the expression quantity of OCN with the control group and with the pure polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF), respectively. Moreover, the membrane with 0.3 wt% TiO2 (P-0.3TN) generated high surface potential and significantly promoted cell adhesion and proliferation through electromechanical stimulation early in osteogenic differentiation. Alkaline phosphatase (ALP) activity was increased up to 2-fold by stimulation of electrical and mechanical signals through piezoelectric fibers, effectively inducing osteogenic differentiation at the early stage. The proposed mechanism of regulating osteogenic differentiation behavior by the surface potential of TiO2 @PVDF piezoelectric fiber composite membrane provides guidance for designing electroactive materials to promote osteogenic differentiation and bone regeneration and remodeling.

Electrospun Multifunctional Radiation Shielding Nanofibrous Membrane for Daily Human Protection

AbstractWith the widespread utilization of many radiation instruments, people are inadvertently suffering from radiation damage. But nowadays, there is still a lack of a lightweight, comfortable, and efficient wearable radiation‐proof multifunctional composite fibrous membranes in people's lives. To solve this problem, a green and efficient radiation‐resistant nanofibrous membrane consisting of cellulose fluorescent particles (CFP), ZnO‐Bi2O3 nanoparticles, and polyacrylonitrile (PAN) solution is prepared by an electrospinning technology. The microscopic characterization shows that the nanoparticles are uniformly dispersed on the surface of the nanofibrous membrane, forming a dense fibrous structure. The PAN/CFP/ZnO‐Bi2O3 nanofibrous membrane exhibits not only an excellent ultraviolet(UV) interception with an ultraviolet protection factor value of 337.99 ± 83.67, but also a strong shielding effect on low‐energy X‐rays. Simultaneously, it can not only photocatalytically degrade 88.17% of methylene blue solution within 150 min, but also remove 94.16 ± 0.96% of Escherichia coli and 99.07 ± 0.59% of Staphylococcus aureus within 3 h under dark incubation and kill all bacteria within 3 h under light. The adhesion, growth, and proliferation of bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells on the PAN/CFP/ZnO‐Bi2O3 nanofibrous membranes confirm its low cytotoxicity and good biosafety. Thus, it could be expected to be used in daily life products such as UV and X‐rays radiation protective clothing.

Rod-like MIL-53(Fe) intercalated MXene nanosheets lamellar composite membrane for the purification of multi-component oily wastewater

The complicated oily wastewater containing hazardous organics post a great challenge to the membrane separation technology. Herein, a multilayer porous multifunctional MXene/MOF composite membrane with high permeability and photocatalytic degradation performance was prepared by embedding rod-shaped MIL-53(Fe) into layered MXene nanosheets and self-assembling them onto porous polyacrylonitrile fibrous mat. It was found that the embedment of rod-like MIL-53(Fe) with rough nanostructures could effectively avoid the dense physical stacking of MXene nanosheets and regulate the layer spacing, which was conducive to the enhancement of water channel and permeability of membrane. Moreover, the hydrophilic modification of TA could render the super-wetting feature (WCA=0°, UOCA>150°) and enhance the oil resistance of the membrane. Thence, the composite membrane exhibited favorable separation flux (904.3 ∼ 1226.5 L·m−2·h−1) and retention rate (99.06 ∼ 99.62%) for different O/W emulsions. In addition, the coupling of rod-like MIL-53(Fe) and MXene nanosheets endowed the composite membrane with efficient photocatalytic performance, which could degrade various dyes contained in oily wastewater (CV: 62.4%, MeB: 99.0%, CR: 79.5%, MO: 84.1%). Overall, this study opens up a new way for the preparation of super-wetting and multi-functional fibrous composite membrane, showing the broad application prospects in the purification of multi-component oily wastewater.

Design and assembly of Ag-decorated Bi2O3 @ 3D MXene Schottky heterojunction for the highly permeable and multiple-antifouling of fibrous membrane in the purification of complex emulsified oil pollutants

Membrane separation technology has potential for purifying emulsified oily wastewater. However, the oils, soluble organic substances, and microorganisms can cause complex membrane fouling problems, thereby reducing the separation efficiency and service life. Herein, a highly permeable and multiple-antifouling composite membrane was prepared using porous PAN fibrous mat as support backbone for the assembly of Ag-decorated Bi2O3 @ 3D MXene Schottky heterojunction and hydrophilic TA as the adhesive. The unique arrangement of 3D MXene heterojunction and hydrophilic functionalization effectively broke through the limitation of separation flux and synergistically enhanced the anti-fouling performance of membrane. Such fibrous composite membrane achieved an exceedingly high permeability (2717–3328 L·m−2·h−1) for various emulsified oils, while ensuring excellent oil/water emulsion retention rate (99.59%) and good cycle stability. Meanwhile, the composite membrane displayed favorable photocatalytic degradation performance toward degrading MeB (96.1%) and antibacterial ability. Furthermore, the MD simulation and free radical trapping experiments were carried out to unravel the molecular interactions during the separation process and the photocatalytic mechanism of composite membrane, respectively. Overall, the combination of photocatalytic self-cleaning, anti-oil adhesion, and antibacterial effect renders the membrane high permeability and multiple-antifouling performance, which provides a new strategy for dealing with complex oily wastewater in petrochemical industry.

Well-ordered and visual poly(ε-caprolactone) composite fibrous membranes for the treatment of skin wounds

Three dimensional (3D) printing near-field electrospinning (NFES) process is a robust method to fabricate fibrous membranes by depositing solid nanofibers in a direct, continuous and controlled manner. In this study, poly(ε-caprolactone) (PCL) solutions were electrospun into composite fibrous membranes with an ordered geometric pore structure by the 3D printing NFES technique. The bioceramic hardystonite (Ca2ZnSi2O7, ZnCS) was added to the PCL fibrous membranes to stimulate epithelial cell and fibroblast proliferation, and adhesion. Meanwhile, the fluorescent material of tetraphenylene (TPE) with easy identification, high sensitivity, and real-time response was added to the PCL fibrous membrane to better observe the wound healing process. The magnitude of the electric field strength and distribution of a single-needle near-field electrospinning system is studied based on the size of the actual device. Furthermore, we analyzed the effect of voltage, distance, and position on the electric field strength based on the simulation results. The results indicated that the composite scaffold was nontoxic, and the cells could adhere, proliferate and differentiate effectively on the composite fibrous membrane scaffold, which could effectively promote wound healing. This PCL/ZnCS/TPE composite fibrous membrane with a controllable structure and pore size is suitable for tissue engineering and medical wound dressing.

Nanoscale β-TCP-Laden GelMA/PCL Composite Membrane for Guided Bone Regeneration.

Major advances in the field of periodontal tissue engineering have favored the fabrication of biodegradable membranes with tunable physical and biological properties for guided bone regeneration (GBR). Herein, we engineered innovative nanoscale beta-tricalcium phosphate (β-TCP)-laden gelatin methacryloyl/polycaprolactone (GelMA/PCL-TCP) photocrosslinkable composite fibrous membranes via electrospinning. Chemo-morphological findings showed that the composite microfibers had a uniform porous network and β-TCP particles successfully integrated within the fibers. Compared with pure PCL and GelMA/PCL, GelMA/PCL-TCP membranes led to increased cell attachment, proliferation, mineralization, and osteogenic gene expression in alveolar bone-derived mesenchymal stem cells (aBMSCs). Moreover, our GelMA/PCL-TCP membrane was able to promote robust bone regeneration in rat calvarial critical-size defects, showing remarkable osteogenesis compared to PCL and GelMA/PCL groups. Altogether, the GelMA/PCL-TCP composite fibrous membrane promoted osteogenic differentiation of aBMSCs in vitro and pronounced bone formation in vivo. Our data confirmed that the electrospun GelMA/PCL-TCP composite has a strong potential as a promising membrane for guided bone regeneration.