Electrospun nanofiber blend with improved mechanical and biological performance

Area of Science:

• Biomaterials Science
• Tissue Engineering
• Polymer Chemistry

Background:

• Development of electrospun fibers using a blend of polycaprolactone (PCL), poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG), and gelatin methacryloyl (GelMA).
• The polymer blend aims to combine PCL's mechanical strength with improved hydrophilicity and osteoblast maturation support.
• Investigating novel biomaterials for enhanced orthopedic applications.

Purpose of the Study:

• To create and characterize electrospun scaffolds with improved hydrophilic properties and enhanced osteogenic potential.
• To evaluate the mechanical properties, wettability, and biological response of the PCL:PEG:GelMA blend.
• To assess the suitability of these scaffolds for orthopedic applications.

Main Methods:

• Fabrication of electrospun fibers from PCL, PEG, and GelMA blend.
• Evaluation of material properties including morphology, chemical structure, wettability, and mechanical strength before and after UV photocrosslinking.
• Culturing human osteoblasts (hFOB) on scaffolds for 21 days to assess cell proliferation, alkaline phosphatase (ALP) activity, and calcium deposition.

Main Results:

• Scaffolds exhibited enhanced hydrophilicity (contact angle 69°) after UV photocrosslinking compared to pure PCL (149°).
• UV-crosslinked PCL:PEG:GelMA scaffolds showed increased mechanical strength (elastic modulus ~37 MPa) while maintaining good elongation properties.
• Significant improvements in hFOB proliferation, ALP activity (10-fold increase at day 14), and calcium deposition (1.3-fold increase at day 21) were observed.

Conclusions:

• The developed PCL:PEG:GelMA electrospun scaffolds possess favorable hydrophilic and mechanical properties.
• These scaffolds effectively promote human osteoblast maturation and function, indicating significant potential for bone tissue regeneration.
• The findings support the use of these advanced biomaterials in various orthopedic applications.