Electroactive nanofibrous biomimetic scaffolds by thermally induced phase separation

Fabrication of functional nanofibrous biomimetic scaffolds for tissue regeneration remains a challenge. This work demonstrates that functional nanofibrous scaffolds were fabricated from blends of polylactide with other functional polymers by a thermally induced phase separation (TIPS) technique, here exemplified by the fabrication of electroactive nanofibrous scaffolds from the blends of polylactide and an electroactive degradable tetraaniline-polylactide-tetraaniline (TPT) block copolymer by TIPS. The TPT copolymer was synthesized by coupling reaction between the carboxyl-capped tetraaniline and polylactide. The chemical structure, electroactivity, thermal properties and mechanical properties of TPT and polylactide/TPT blend films were characterized. The copolymer blends were fabricated into electroactive nanofibrous scaffolds by TIPS. The effect of aniline tetramer content, polymer concentration and phase separation temperature on the diameter of nanofibers was investigated. The adhesion and proliferation of C2C12 myoblast cells and protein adsorption on the electroactive biodegradable substrates were evaluated, and the results show that the electroactive materials are nontoxic and could enhance the C2C12 cell proliferation without electrical stimulation, and adsorbed more proteins compared to polylactide. The electrical stimulation on the electroactive substrates significantly increased the cell proliferation of C2C12 myoblasts. This work opens the way to fabricate functional nanofibrous scaffolds from the blends of polylactide and other functional polymers by TIPS.