Farnesol-modified biodegradable polyurethanes for cartilage tissue engineering

A bifunctionalized 3,7,11-trimethyl-2,6,10-dodecatrien-1-diaminobutane amide (isoprenoid) was obtained from 3,7,11-trimethyl-2,6,10-dodecatrien-1-ol (farnesol) in a three-step synthesis. The bifunctionalized isoprenoid was characterized using infrared spectroscopy and (1)H and (13)C nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy and was covalently incorporated (0.12 mmol x g(-1)) into the biodegradable aliphatic polyurethane formed on the polycondensation reaction of poly(epsilon-caprolactone) diol, 1,4,3,6-dianhydro-D-sorbitol and 1,6-hexamethylene diisocyanate. Although the covalent incorporation of the isoprenoid molecule into the polyurethane chain modified the surface chemistry of the polymer, it did not affect the viability of attached chondrocytes. Porous 3D scaffolds were produced from the modified and unmodified biodegradable segmented polyurethanes by a salt leaching-phase-inverse technique. The scaffolds were seeded with bovine chondrocytes encapsulated in fibrin gel and cultured in vitro for 14 days. The incorporation of bifunctional isoprenoid into the polyurethane affected the morphology of the scaffolds produced, when compared with the morphology of the scaffolds produced using the same technique from the unmodified polyurethane. As a consequence, there was more uniform cell seeding and more homogeneous distribution of the synthesized extracellular matrix throughout the scaffold resulting in a reduced cell/tissue layer at the edges of the constructs. However, glycosaminoglycan (GAG), DNA content, and chondrocytes phenotype in the scaffolds produced from these two polyurethane formulations did not vary significantly. The findings suggest that the change of surface characteristics and the more open pore structure of the scaffolds produced from the isoprenoid-modified polyurethane are beneficial for the seeding efficiency and the homogeneity of the tissue engineered constructs.