Chitosan microparticles as injectable scaffolds for tissue engineering applications

[Excerpt] Microparticles may be used as a support for the adhesion and proliferation of cells. Therefore, the combination of isolated particles and previously incubated cells on their surface may have potential to be used, in the form of a suspension with media, as an injectable scaffold in the context of tissue regeneration: on expects that the particles might agglomerate after the implantation as a consequence of cells proliferation and extracellular matrix production. [...]info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Regenerative and resorbable PLA/HA hybrid construct for tendon/ligament tissue engineering

[EN] Tendon and ligament shows extremely limited endogenous regenerative capacity. Current treatments are based on the replacement and or augmentation of the injured tissue but the repaired tissue rarely achieve functionality equal to that of the preinjured tissue. To address this challenge, tissue engineering has emerged as a promising strategy. This study develops a regenerative and resorbable hybrid construct for tendon and ligament engineering. The construct is made up by a hollow poly-lactic acid braid with embedded microspheres carrying cells and an anti-adherent coating, with all the parts being made of biodegradable materials. This assembly intends to regenerate the tissue starting from the interior of the construct towards outside while it degrades. Fibroblasts cultured on poly lactic acid and hyaluronic acid microspheres for 6 h were injected into the hollow braid and the construct was cultured for 14 days. The cells thus transported into the lumen of the construct were able to migrate and adhere to the braid fibers naturally, leading to a homogeneous proliferation inside the braid. Moreover, no cells were found on the outer surface of the coating. Altogether, this study demonstrated that PLA/HA hybrid construct could be a promising material for tendon and ligament repair.This work was supported by AITEX (Textil Research Institute, Alcoi, Alicante, Spain) through the researching contract "Development of braided biomaterials for biomedical applications'' and also funded by AEI "RTI2018-095872-B-C21 and C22/ERDF''.Araque-Monrós, MC.; García-Cruz, DM.; Escobar-Ivirico, JL.; Gil-Santos, L.; Monleón Pradas, M.; Más Estellés, J. (2020). Regenerative and resorbable PLA/HA hybrid construct for tendon/ligament tissue engineering. Annals of Biomedical Engineering. 48(2):757-767. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10439-019-02403-0S757767482Aktas, E., C. S. Chamberlain, E. E. Saether, S. E. 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Microcomputed tomography and microfinite element modeling for evaluating polymer scaffolds architecture and their mechanical properties

Detailed knowledge of the porous architecture of synthetic scaffolds for tissue engineering, their mechanical properties, and their interrelationship was obtained in a nondestructive manner. Image analysis of microcomputed tomography (μCT) sections of different scaffolds was done. The three-dimensional (3D) reconstruction of the scaffold allows one to quantify scaffold porosity, including pore size, pore distribution, and struts' thickness. The porous morphology and porosity as calculated from μCT by image analysis agrees with that obtained experimentally by scanning electron microscopy and physically measured porosity, respectively. Furthermore, the mechanical properties of the scaffold were evaluated by making use of finite element modeling (FEM) in which the compression stress–strain test is simulated on the 3D structure reconstructed from the μCT sections. Elastic modulus as calculated from FEM is in agreement with those obtained from the stress–strain experimental test. The method was applied on qualitatively different porous structures (interconnected channels and spheres) with different chemical compositions (that lead to different elastic modulus of the base material) suitable for tissue regeneration. The elastic properties of the constructs are explained on the basis of the FEM model that supports the main mechanical conclusion of the experimental results: the elastic modulus does not depend on the geometric characteristics of the pore (pore size, interconnection throat size) but only on the total porosity of the scaffold

Structure and dynamics in poly(L-lactide) copolymer networks

Poly(L-lactide) networks (PmLA) hydrophilized with different amounts of 2-hydroxyethyl acrylate (HEA) were investigated by dielectric relaxation spectroscopy, thermally stimulated depolarization currents, and differential scanning calorimetry. The incorporation of HEA units in the PmLA network, with the aim of modulating the water sorption capacity of the system, results in a material with a complex behavior. The system consists of phase-separated microdomains richer in one or the other comonomers that constitute the network. Initially, the addition of smalls amount of HEA units in the network gives rise to a one-phase, two-component system; however, when the amount of HEA in the system increases, a new phase (HEA-rich one) is formed containing some mLA chains that modify the main relaxation mode of these domains and the local dynamics of the system. The structure of the system has been analyzed by comparing the relaxational modes in the PmLA and PHEA homonetworks with those in the copolymer networks