Novel porous poly(propylene fumarate‐co‐caprolactone) scaffolds fabricated by thermally induced phase separation

Abstract

Scaffolds with porous structures are highly applicable for tissue engineering and regenerative medicine. In the present study, 3-dimensional poly(propylene fumarate-co-caprolactone) [P(PF-co-CL)] scaffolds were fabricated from a P(PF-co-CL)-dioxane-water ternary system through thermally induced phase separation (TIPS). Cloud points of P(PF-co-CL) in dioxane-water solutions increased with increased solute concentration, but increased dioxane composition decreased cloud point. Among 3 polymer concentrations (4, 8, and 12 wt%), 8 wt% P(PF-co-CL) scaffolds exhibited the best pore interconnectivity, with large, regular sized pores. Scaffolds were formed in 3 solutions with different dioxane-water ratios (74/26, 78/22, and 82/18 wt/wt); the 78/22 wt/wt scaffold had finger-shaped patterns with better interconnectivity than scaffolds from the other two ratios. Higher dioxane-water ratios resulted in a larger contact angle and thus less wettability for the fabricated scaffold, while scaffolds fabricated from higher concentrations of P(PF-co-CL) or high dioxane-water ratios had better biomineralization after soaking in simulated body fluid. In vitro cell viability testing showed the scaffolds had good biocompatibility with both bone and nerve cells. The results indicate that the polymer concentration and solvents ratio significantly affect the formation of porous structures, and optimum processing parameters were found to be 8% polymer concentration and 22% to 24% water content. These porous P(PF-co-CL) scaffolds fabricated via TIPS may be useful in various tissue engineering applications © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Biomed Mater Res Part A: 105A: 226-235, 2017.

Macroporous 3D Scaffold with Self-Fitting Capability for Effectively Repairing Massive Rotator Cuff Tear

“…Highly porous scaffolds can be prepared through the TIPS procedure, which is critical for tissue regeneration. , Though no consensus regarding the certain porosity values, ideal pore size, and percentage of interconnected pores has been made, previous reports confirmed that high porosity values are advantageous for tissue regeneration. The present study revealed that the scaffold prepared through the TIPS procedure not only supports adhesion and proliferation of RBMSCs but also facilitates their immigration.…”

Three‐dimensional porous poly(propylene fumarate)‐co‐poly(lactic‐co‐glycolic acid) scaffolds for tissue engineering

“…22 The technical principles of using TIPS to fabricate interconnected scaffolds were previously described, 20 and the dioxane-water binary solvent was developed in an earlier study for inducing phase separation in a homogenized solvent. 36 However, different polymers have their own properties, which influence solubility in different solvent systems and phase separation processes. In the present work, we explored the effects of various PPF-co-PLGA concentrations and dioxane-water ratios on the 3D structures and characteristics of scaffolds.…”

Tailoring synthetic polymeric biomaterials towards nerve tissue engineering: a review

“…Guo et al reported that the concentration of PPF and solvents ratio strongly affected the formation of pores into the structure of scaffold. They mentioned that among different concentrations of (4, 8, and 12 wt%) polymer, 8 wt% demonstrated the best pore interconnectivity for nerve tissue engineering applications [118].…”