Surface modification and characterization of chitosan film blended with poly-L-lysine

Biodegradable nerve guidance conduits (NGCs) represent a promising alternative to current clinical nerve repair procedures. Chitosan, a natural polysaccharide that has excellent biocompatibility and biodegradability, can be used as a nerve conduit material. The purpose of this work was to study the nerve cell affinity of chitosan modified by blending with different content of poly-L-lysine. PC12 cells culture was used to evaluate the nerve cell affinity of the chitosan-poly-L-lysine composite materials. The results showed that composite materials had significantly improved nerve cell affinity compared to chitosan as indicated by increased attachment, differentiation, and growth of nerve cells. The improved nerve cell affinity might be due to both the increased surface charge and hydrophilicity of composite materials. Composite material with 3 wt% poly-L-lysine content (PL-3) is an even better material in nerve cell affinity than collagen, suggesting that poly-L-lysine-blended chitosan is a promising candidate material for nerve regeneration.