Architectured helically coiled scaffolds from elastomeric poly(butylene succinate) (PBS) copolyester via wet electrospinning

Abstract

<jats:p>&lt;div&gt;&lt;div&gt;&lt;div&gt;&lt;p&gt;Electrospinning is one of the most investigated methods used to produce polymeric fiber structures that mimic the morphology of native extracellular matrix. These structures have been extensively studied in the context of scaffolds for tissue regeneration. However, the compactness of materials obtained by traditional electrospinning, collected as two-dimensional non-woven scaffolds, can limit cell infiltration and tissue ingrowth. In addition, for applications in smooth muscle tissue engineering, highly elastic scaffolds capable of withstanding cyclic mechanical strains without suffering significant permanent deformations are preferred. In order to address these challenges, we report the fabrication of microscale 3D helically coiled structures (referred as 3D-HCS) by wet-electrospinning method, a modification of the traditional electrospinning process in which a coagulation bath (non-solvent system for the electrospun material) is used as the collector. The present study, for the first time, successfully demonstrates the feasibility of using this method to produce various architectures of 3D-HCS from segmented copolyester of poly(butylene succinate-co- dilinoleic succinate) (PBS-DLS), a thermoplastic elastomer. A mechanism for the HCS formation is proposed and verified with experimental data. Fabricated 3D-HCS showed high specific surface area, high porosity, and good elasticity. Further, the marked increase in cell proliferation on 3D-HCS confirmed the suitability of these materials as scaffolds for soft tissue engineering.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</jats:p>

Adsorption of Fibrinogen and Fibronectin on Elastomeric Poly(butylene Succinate) Copolyesters

“…In this range, adhesion complexes are dynamic and experiments with polyacrylamide gels of various stiffness have also indicated that modulus values <20 kPa favor cell motility (Pelham and Wang, 1997). Thus, our results here help explain our prior findings of robust fibroblast infiltration and proliferation within electrospun 3D scaffolds of PBS-DLS 7030 copolymer (Sonseca et al, 2018), despite the lack of biofunctionality of the polymer itself: the adsorption of provisional matrix proteins such as Fg and Fn from the serum-containing cell culture media likely facilitated the favorable cell-scaffold interactions.…”

“…This family of copolymers, with varying hard to soft segment ratios, offers tunable mechanical properties typical of thermoplastic elastomers. More recently, our work with closely related PBS copolymers with DLS soft segments synthesized with enzymatic catalyst, has demonstrated the potential of these copolyesters for soft tissue engineering, as they are readily electrospinnable into 2D and 3D scaffolds and possess attractive mechanical and degradation properties (Sonseca and El Fray, 2017;Sonseca et al, 2018;Wcisłek et al, 2018). It is with these applications in mind, that we set out to study the adsorption of fibrinogen and fibronectin on PBS homopolymer and PBS-DLS copolymers with varying weight ratios (100:0, 70:30, 60:40, 50:50) of hard to soft segments.…”

Development and Characterization of Bioactive Poly(butylene-succinate) Films Modified with Quercetin for Food Packaging Applications

“…Moreover, biopolymers have a great potential in biomedical and packaging applications [ 4 ]. A variety of biodegradable polymers have been tested, such as poly(lactic acid), polyhydroxyalkanoates, poly(ε-caprolactone), poly(butylene adipate-co-butylene terephthalate), and poly(butylene succinate) [ 3 , 4 , 6 , 8 , 12 , 13 , 14 ]. An interest in the mentioned polymers for food packaging applications has increased in the last two decades, posing one of the types of sustainable packaging materials.…”

“…Among the biodegradable aliphatic polyesters, poly(butylene succinate) (PBS) has great potential for commercial applications due to its biodegradability, thermal stability, low melting point, relatively easy processibility in the industrial-scale manufacturing, and chemical resistance [ 3 , 4 , 6 , 8 , 10 , 13 , 14 ]. PBS is synthesized via a polycondensation process from succinic acid and 1,4-butanediol and consists of polymerized units of butylene succinate with repeating C 8 H 12 O 4 units [ 3 ].…”

“…In recent years, the main feedstock to produce PBS, succinic acid, has been successfully derived from biobased resources [ 5 , 8 , 17 ]. Thus, it is identified as a safe and nontoxic potential material for biomedical and food packing applications [ 10 , 13 , 14 ]. However, poor impact strength, insufficient stiffness, low melt viscosity, as well as high production costs have limited its further applications [ 3 , 6 , 8 , 17 ].…”