A novel egg-shell membrane based hybrid nanofibrous scaffold for cutaneous tissue engineering

Area of Science:

• Biomaterials Science
• Tissue Engineering
• Dermatology

Background:

• Developing engineered scaffolds from natural extracellular matrix is crucial for cutaneous regeneration.
• Promoting skin progenitor cell dynamics and keratinocyte differentiation are key challenges.

Purpose of the Study:

• To create and evaluate novel nanofibrous scaffolds for cutaneous tissue regeneration.
• To assess the capacity of these scaffolds to support human basal cell differentiation into keratinocyte-like cells.

Main Methods:

• Electrospinning was used to fabricate scaffolds from poly (ɛ-caprolactone) (PCL), silk fibroin (SF), soluble eggshell membrane (SESM), and Aloe vera (AV) gel.
• Human basal cells were cultured on scaffolds (PCL/SF, PCL/SF/SESM, PCL/SF/SESM/AV) and a control.
• Cell morphology, proliferation, cytokeratin-19 expression, and gene expression (involucrin, keratin-14, -5) were analyzed.

Main Results:

• All tested scaffolds (PCL/SF, PCL/SF/SESM, PCL/SF/SESM/AV) exhibited suitable physicochemical properties and biological activity for cutaneous tissue restoration.
• The PCL/SF/SESM/AV scaffold demonstrated significantly increased basal cell proliferation compared to controls.
• Scaffolds supported basal cell differentiation, with notable induction of involucrin, keratin-14, and keratin-5, particularly in the PCL/SF/SESM/AV group.

Conclusions:

• Modifying scaffolds with natural biopolymers like SESM and AV enhances their suitability for cutaneous regeneration.
• These biomimetic scaffolds show promise for promoting skin progenitor cell dynamics and keratinocyte differentiation.