3D printing‐assistedcombinatorial approach for designing mechanically‐tunable and vascular supportive nanofibrous membranes to repair perforated eardrum

Abstract

Perforation of eardrum or tympanic membrane (TM) is a common clinical condition, which occurs due to infection or injury of the eardrum, and could results in varying degrees of conductive hearing loss among all ages. In this study, the authors report the combinatorial approach of designing mechanically-tunable and vascular supportive nanofibrous membranes by 3D printing-assisted electrospinning (e-spin) using polycaprolactone (PCL) and gelatin with different mass ratios suitable to repair a perforated eardrum. The physicochemical, mechanical, and biological properties of the membranes were characterized. The results show that the membrane has nanofibrous morphology with fibers are of varying size (400-600 nm in diameter) depending on processing conditions. The wettability and mechanical properties of the membrane can be tuned by regulating the gelatin content. Moreover, a biomimetic repair strategy inspired by chicken eggshell membrane, often used in wound dressings, was also presented for study and results show that the suture retention strength of the fabricated membrane can meet clinical translational requirements to promote TM healing. The vascular cell responsiveness of PCL/gelatin nanofibrous membrane was evaluated using human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs) and the results showed satisfactory biocompatibility, vascular cell responsiveness, and cell proliferation. The findings of this study demonstrate that the combinatorically engineered PCL/gelatin nanofibrous membrane has great potential for repairing perforated eardrum.

3D Printing GelMA/PVA Interpenetrating Polymer Networks Scaffolds Mediated with CuO Nanoparticles for Angiogenesis

“…Cell proliferation activity was quantified using the Cell Counting Kit‐8 (CCK‐8, Servicebio) as previously reported approach. [ 51 ] Briefly, the sterilized scaffolds were treated with culture medium for 48 h to prepare the leaching solution in advance. The cell suspension was prepared by the treated culture medium with a density of 1 × 10 5 cells mL −1 and then 100 µL cell suspension was seeded in 96‐well plates.…”

3D Bioprinting tissue analogs: Current development and translational implications

“…119 Nevertheless, significant progress has already been made in this area recently. 60,61,[122][123][124] Lee et al demonstrated, as a proof of concept, the application of a human recombinant elastic bio-ink with which they could bioprint a vascularized cardiac construct that displayed the endothelium barrier function. 125 Therefore, constructing complex hierarchical vascularized networks in bioprinted tissue construct and establishing a connection with the host by surgical anastomosis or other technical solutions are issues that need to be addressed urgently.…”

Designing Double‐Layer Multimaterial Composite Patch Scaffold with Adhesion Resistance for Hernia Repair

“…[17][18][19] Recent studies have shown that PCL can prompt vascular growth and wound healing with its good mechanical properties and slow degradation kinetics. [20][21][22] For the fabrication of patches, various mothed and manufacture processes were developed in the past decade years, one of commonly methods is knitting, which is to form the desired patch by bending the filaments into circles and then serially sheathing each other. However, knitted patch not only requires special equipment, but also has poor flexibility in design and material, so it is difficult to realize personalized customization for different patients.…”