Composite porous scaffold of PEG/PLA support improved bone matrix deposition in vitro compared to PLA‐only scaffolds

Abstract

Controllable pore size and architecture are essential properties for tissue-engineering scaffolds to support cell ingrowth colonization. To investigate the effect of polyethylene glycol (PEG) addition on porosity and bone-cell behavior, porous polylactic acid (PLA)-PEG scaffolds were developed with varied weight ratios of PLA-PEG (100/0, 90/10, 75/25) using solvent casting and porogen leaching. Sugar 200-300 µm in size was used as a porogen. To assess scaffold suitability for bone tissue engineering, MLO-A5 murine osteoblast cells were cultured and cell metabolic activity, alkaline phosphatase (ALP) activity and bone-matrix production determined using (alizarin red S staining for calcium and direct red 80 staining for collagen). It was found that metabolic activity was significantly higher over time on scaffolds containing PEG, ALP activity and mineralized matrix production were also significantly higher on scaffolds containing 25% PEG. Porous architecture and cell distribution and penetration into the scaffold were analyzed using SEM and confocal microscopy, revealing that inclusion of PEG increased pore interconnectivity and therefore cell ingrowth in comparison to pure PLA scaffolds. The results of this study confirmed that PLA-PEG porous scaffolds support mineralizing osteoblasts better than pure PLA scaffolds, indicating they have a high potential for use in bone tissue engineering applications. © 2018 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Biomed Mater Res Part A: 106A: 1334-1340, 2018.

A Novel Bilayer Polycaprolactone Membrane for Guided Bone Regeneration: Combining Electrospinning and Emulsion Templating

“…As MLO-A5s cultured in supplemented media, they were expected to deposit calcified extracellular matrix (ECM) [47,72,73]. Prideaux et al previously reported that supplementation of MLO-A5 cell cultures with AA2P and βGP showed a significant increase in ECM mineralization compared to the non-supplemented group [14].…”

Challenges on optimization of 3D-printed bone scaffolds

“…Furthermore, composites of ceramic and biodegradable metal such as magnesium-calcium phosphate can provide superior biocompatibility, biodegradability and faster and more efficient osteogenesis in vivo [101]. Polymer-polymer composites have also been extensively developed for making bone scaffolds with better function, examples are scaffolds made of polyethylene glycol (PEG)-PLA [102], PLA-polyaniline (PANI) [103], chitosan-collagen-hyaluronic acid [104] and many others. It should be pointed out despite the advantages offered by uniform composite, there is a trade-off between the material properties.…”

Processing of poly-l-lactide and poly(l-lactide-co-trimethylene carbonate) blends by fused filament fabrication and fused granulate fabrication using RepRap 3D printer

“…PLLA scaffolds with the application in bone tissue engineering could be prepared by FDM [32], also with the additives as hydroxyapatite [33] or with collagen after further modification [34]. Other methods of the preparation include electrospinning for PLA scaffolds with hydroxyapatite and collagen [35] or porogen leaching for the scaffolds made of PLA blends with polyethylene glycol [36]. Amorphous poly(trimethylene carbonate) (PTMC) has only limited applications comparing with the other biodegradable polymers [37].…”