Dual Electrospun Supramolecular Polymer Systems for Selective Cell Migration

Area of Science:

• Biomaterials Science
• Regenerative Medicine
• Polymer Chemistry

Background:

• Multifunctional scaffolds are crucial for regenerative medicine.
• Dual electrospinning offers a method to create complex scaffold architectures.
• Supramolecular polymers provide tunable material properties for scaffold design.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop multifunctional scaffolds using dual electrospinning of two distinct supramolecular polymers.
• To incorporate peptide delivery capabilities into the scaffolds.
• To investigate the ability of the scaffolds to recruit specific cells.

Main Methods:

• Simultaneous dual electrospinning of bisurea (BU)-based polycaprolactone (PCL) and ureido-pyrimidinone (UPy) modified poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG).
• Modular tuning of UPyPEG hydrogelator length to control swelling and mechanical properties.
• Embedding Stromal cell derived factor 1 alpha (SDF1α) peptides within UPyPEG fibers.

Main Results:

• Successfully fabricated multifibrous scaffolds with tunable swelling and mechanical properties.
• Demonstrated controlled release of SDF1α peptide triggered by scaffold swelling and erosion.
• Observed preferential lymphocyte recruitment, suggesting gradient-based cell guidance.

Conclusions:

• Dual electrospinning provides a versatile platform for creating advanced regenerative medicine scaffolds.
• The developed scaffolds can deliver therapeutic peptides in a controlled manner.
• This approach holds potential for engineering functional tissue regeneration strategies.