Multicomponent Non-Woven Fibrous Mats with Balanced Processing and Functional Properties

Abstract

The mimicking of the architectonics of native tissue, biodegradable non-woven fibrous mats is one of the most promising forms of scaffolding for tissue engineering. The key properties needed for their successful application in vivo, such as biodegradability, biocompatibility, morphology, mechanical properties, etc., rely on their composition and appropriate 3D structure. A multicomponent system based on biodegradable synthetic (polycaprolactone, oligo-/polylactide) and natural (chitosan, gelatin) polymers, providing the desired processing characteristics and functionality to non-woven mats fabricated via the electrospinning technique, was developed. The solid-state reactive blending of these components provided a one-step synthesis of amphiphilic graft copolymer with an ability to form stable ultra-fine dispersions in chlorinated solvents, which could be successfully used as casting solvents for the electrospinning technique. The synthesized graft copolymer was analyzed with the aim of fractional analysis, dynamic laser scattering, FTIR-spectroscopy and DSC. Casting solution characteristics, namely viscosity, surface tension, and electroconductivity, as well as electrospinning parameters, were studied and optimized. The morphology, chemical structure of the surface layer, mechanical properties and cytocompatibility were analyzed to confirm the appropriate functionality of the formed fibrous materials as scaffolds for tissue engineering.

Electrospinning vs. Electro-Assisted Solution Blow Spinning for Fabrication of Fibrous Scaffolds for Tissue Engineering

“…Incubation of the samples in water before the testing caused swelling of the hydrophilic biopolymers which led to some degree of softening (a decrease in elastic modulus and tensile strength), at the same time an increase in elongation at break was observed for the EA-SBS sample. Overall, the samples demonstrated mechanical properties expected for similar polymer systems and are in the range of those with connective tissues [ 29 , 35 ].…”

“…Chitosan with Mw of 80 kDa and degree of deacetylation of 0.89 as well as oligo( l -lactide) with Mw of 5 kDa from l -lactic acids (Panreac, Barcelona, Spain) were synthesized in Enikolopov Institute of Synthetic Polymeric Materials. Multicomponent copolymer-contained system based on polycaprolactone/poly( l -lactide)/oligo( l -lactide)/chitosan/gelatin (PPCOG) was obtained via mechanochemical approach and characterized as reported earlier [ 29 ]. Hexafluoroisopropanol (HFIP) was purchased from “Chemmed” (Moscow, Russia) and used as received.…”

“…The contact angles are reported as the average of at least three measurements; the standard deviation for contact angles was ±1 degree. To check the presence of natural components at the material surface the mats were stained with fluorescein isothiocyanate (FITC) (Sigma-Aldrich, St. Louis, MO, USA) and observed using fluorescent microscopy as described previously [ 29 ]. The water retaining capacity and swelling ratio of the fibrous materials was studied in mQ water.…”

“…One type of polymers is not enough to provide optimal characteristics needed for “ideal” scaffolds, but a combination of various polymers could compromise the processability of a composite system. To overcome the thermodynamic incompatibility of biodegradable polymers widely proposed for fabrication of scaffolds, i.e., the synthetic (polylactide, polycaprolactone) and the natural (gelatin, chitosan), a multicomponent system containing a fraction of graft-copolymers was synthesized [ 29 ]. The polyester part of the system allowed for keeping the processability form easily evaporated in organic aprotic solvents, while natural components provided biocompatibility to mats fabricated from this system via ES from chloroform.…”

Materials Based on Chitosan and Polylactide: From Biodegradable Plastics to Tissue Engineering Constructions

“…Another significant advantage of solid-state reactive blending is the possibility to obtain multicomponent systems containing proteins or other polymers and stabilized by in situ formed graft copolymer fractions. Hybrid systems of chitosan with oligolatide/polylactides containing collagen were obtained by this method, gelatin, and polycaprolactone show promise for the production of biodegradable and biocompatible materials of various shapes for use in regenerative medicine [109][110][111][112][113].…”