Design and characterization of bio-elastomers containing biomaterials for tissue engineering application

The purpose of this research is to fabricate a new type of bio-elastomer based on Poly(glycerol-sebacate)-co-Poly(hydroxybutyrate) (PGS-co-PHB) with varying amounts of bioglass 45S5 (BG) nanoparticles (1, 3 and 5 wt%) through the green polycondensation polymerization for tissue engineering applications.

Fabricated composite films are characterized by FTIR, ¹H NMR, SEM, EDX, contact angle, DMTA, biodegradability, and biocompatibility. The cell viability and morphology of L929 cells are investigated by indirect MTT assay and SEM analysis, and the antibacterial activity of composite film is determined by the disk diffusion method. Furthermore, the bioactivity of the composite film is measured by soaking in simulated body fluid (SBF), and XRD and SEM determined the formation of a hydroxyapatite (HA) layer.

The hydrophilicity improved by adding BG nanoparticles, and the water contact angle was reduced to 63.46°. Furthermore, the average cell viability of composite film is about 94 %, and the SEM images show that L929 fibroblast cells are well spread on the surface of the composite film. BG has a significant influence on the antibacterial activity of composite film as PGS-co-PHB/5 %BG shows more antibacterial properties due to the higher amount of BG. SEM and XRD analyses confirmed the presence of crystalline HA on the surfaces of the composite film, indicating their potential for high bioactivity.

The results indicate that the antibacterial composite films are excellent supports for cell growth and proliferation and could be promising candidates for tissue engineering applications.