Electrically conductive surface modifications of three-dimensional polypropylene fumarate scaffolds

Polypropylene fumarate (PPF) scaffolds fabricated by rapid prototyping were surface modified by solution deposition of electrically conductive polypyrrole coatings with or without hydroxyapatite. Scaffolds were electrically conductive with resistivity as low as 2Ω. Scaffold characterization by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and thermo gravimetric analysis shows both polypyrrole and hydroxyapatite are present. Cell viability, attachment, proliferation, and differentiation were analyzed using human fetal osteoblast cells. These studies show that surface modification using hydroxyapatite improved cell attachment and proliferation of osteoblasts onto the PPF scaffolds. Alkaline phosphatase activity as a marker for osteogenic differentiation of cell to mature osteoblasts was analyzed. Our data reveal that osteoblasts maintained their phenotype on PPF scaffolds with and without coatings. Thus, these scaffolds could be appropriate candidates for our future in vivo studies.