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A Facile and Eco-friendly Route to Fabricate Poly(Lactic Acid) Scaffolds with Graded Pore Size
Published on: October 17, 2016
Polylactic acid-phosphate glass composite foams as scaffolds for bone tissue engineering
G Georgiou1, L Mathieu, D P Pioletti
1Division of Biomaterials and Tissue Engineering, UCL Eastman Dental Institute, 256 Gray's Inn Road, London WC1X 8LD, UK.
Summary
Phosphate glass fillers enhance poly-L-lactic acid foams for bone tissue engineering scaffolds. While increasing mechanical strength, the glass dissolution affects degradation and foaming, yet biocompatibility remains promising for bone regeneration applications.
Area of Science:
- Biomaterials Science
- Materials Engineering
- Biotechnology
Background:
- Poly-L-lactic acid (PLA) is a biodegradable polymer suitable for tissue engineering scaffolds.
- Phosphate glass (PG) is explored as a filler to enhance PLA properties.
- Bone tissue engineering requires scaffolds with specific mechanical and degradation characteristics.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the effects of phosphate glass (PG) filler on the properties of poly-L-lactic acid (PLA) foams.
- To assess the suitability of PLA-PG composites as degradable scaffolds for bone tissue engineering.
- To evaluate the mechanical properties, degradation behavior, foaming characteristics, and biocompatibility of these composite materials.
Main Methods:
- Composites of PLA and varying wt% of PG (0-20%) were fabricated using melt extrusion.
- Bulk composites were compression-molded, while porous foams were created using supercritical CO2 foaming.
- Characterization included dynamic mechanical analysis, aging studies (weight loss, pH, ion release), foaming process analysis, and cell proliferation assays.
Main Results:
- Incorporating 20 wt% PG significantly increased the storage modulus of bulk PLA composites.
- Degradation was primarily due to PG dissolution, dependent on glass content.
- Foaming was feasible for 5 and 10 wt% PG composites, maintaining porosity above 75%.
- PLA-PG foams exhibited higher glass transition temperatures (Tg) than bulk PLA.
- No significant reinforcement or anisotropy was observed in compressive moduli.
- Human fetal bone cell proliferation was comparable on PLA-PG foams to other bioceramic-filled PLA foams, though initially slower than pure PLA.
Conclusions:
- Phosphate glass can be incorporated into PLA to enhance mechanical properties and tune degradation for bone tissue engineering scaffolds.
- The foaming process and material density are influenced by PG content, requiring optimization for specific applications.
- PLA-PG composites demonstrate promising biocompatibility, comparable to established bone graft materials, supporting their potential in bone regeneration.
