The present work is a comparative evaluation of physical and biological properties of electrospun biodegradable fibrous scaffolds based on polycaprolactone (PCL) and its blend with polycaprolactone-polyethyleneglycol-polycaprolactone (CEC) with and without nanohydroxyapatite (nHAP) particles. The fiber morphology, porosity, surface wettability, and mechanical properties of electrospun PCL were distinctly influenced by the presence of both copolymer CEC and nHAP. The degradation in hydrolytic media affected both morphological and mechanical properties of the scaffolds and the tensile strength decreased by 58% for PCL, 83% for PCL/CEC, 36% for PCL/nHAP and 75% for PCL/CEC/nHAP in 90 days of PBS ageing. MTT assay using mouse fibroblast L929 cells proved all the scaffolds to be non-cytotoxic. An overall enhanced performance was shown by PCL/CEC/nHAP scaffold in cell viability (LPH) and proliferation (Picogreen). Simultaneously, ELF assay of ALP activity (bone marker) confirmed the presence of osteogenic-induced Rabbit adipose-derived mesenchymal stem cells (ADMSCs) on all the scaffolds. In comparison, the results reveal the potential of the cytocompatible PCL/CEC/nHAP scaffold for the fabrication of living bony constructs for tissue engineering applications.

In the present study, we attempt to modify Polycaprolactone (PCL) by blending it with a water soluble polymer Polyethyleneoxide (PEO) having two different molecular weights (Mv ~1,00,000 and 6,00,000) using electrospinning technique. The effect of PEO molecular weight and blend ratio on fiber morphology, porosity, surface wettability, static and dynamic mechanical properties of PCL was investigated. In vitro degradation studies in phosphate buffer saline (PBS) at 37 °C demonstrated formation of pores on fiber surface especially in blend scaffolds with 50:50 ratios. In vitro studies using human osteoblast sarcoma (hOS) cell lines on blend scaffolds showed improved cellular response with good cell adhesion, viability and proliferation. The study revealed that incorporation of PEO on PCL scaffolds complemented the properties of PCL and facilitated fabrication of scaffolds with improved hydrophilicity, mechanical property and tunable degradation profile with better cell viability which makes it an ideal candidate for bone tissue engineering applications.

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This study explores the potential of electrospun polycaprolactone scaffolds for the controlled delivery of pamidronate disodium pentahydrate, an amino-bisphosphonate drug used for the treatment of osteoporosis. Major drawbacks associated with oral bisphosphonate therapy are its poor bioavailability and gastrointestinal side-effects. Herein, we used polycaprolactone, a well-known Food and Drug Administration–approved biomaterial, as the delivering vehicle for pamidronate disodium pentahydrate. Scaffolds based on polycaprolactone with three different formulations (1, 3, and 5 wt%) of pamidronate disodium pentahydrate were fabricated by electrospinning, and a comparative study was carried out to evaluate the effect of pamidronate disodium pentahydrate on physico-mechanical and biological properties of polycaprolactone. The observations from Fourier-transform infrared spectra and thermogravimetric analysis confirmed the successful incorporation of pamidronate disodium pentahydrate into polycaprolactone scaffolds. The study also revealed that pamidronate disodium pentahydrate–loaded scaffolds exhibited improved hydrophilicity as well as superior mechanical properties as depicted by the contact angle measurements and mechanical property evaluation. In vitro drug release studies of pamidronate disodium pentahydrate–loaded scaffolds in phosphate buffer saline at 37°C showed that all the scaffolds exhibited controlled release of pamidronate disodium pentahydrate. In vitro degradation studies further revealed that pamidronate disodium pentahydrate incorporated polycaprolactone scaffolds degraded faster as depicted by the fiber rupture and drop in mechanical properties. In vitro cell culture studies using human osteosarcoma cell lines demonstrated that pamidronate disodium pentahydrate–loaded polycaprolactone scaffolds were cytocompatible. The human osteosarcoma cells had favorable interaction with the scaffolds, and the viability of adhered cells was depicted by the fluorescein diacetate/propidium iodide staining. MTT assay further revealed enhanced cell viability on PCL/PDS3 scaffolds. Our findings bespeak that the pamidronate disodium pentahydrate–encapsulated electrospun polycaprolactone scaffolds have the potential to serve as a promising drug delivery vehicle for osteoporotic bone defect repair.