Fabrication of poly (ε-caprolactone) microfiber scaffolds with varying topography and mechanical properties for stem cell-based tissue engineering applications
Date
2014
Authors
Ko, Junghyuk
Mohtaram, Nima Khadem
Ahmed, Farid
Montgomery, Amy
Carlson, Michael
Lee, Patrick C.D.
Willerth, Stephanie
Jun, Martin B.G.
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Journal of Biomaterials Science—Polymer Edition
Abstract
Highly porous poly (ε-caprolactone) microfiber scaffolds can be fabricated using electrospinning for tissue engineering applications. Melt electrospinning produces such scaffolds by direct deposition of a polymer melt instead of dissolving the polymer in a solvent as performed during solution electrospinning. The objective of this study was to investigate the significant parameters associated with the melt electrospinning process that influence fiber diameter and scaffold morphology, including processing temperature, collection distance, applied voltage and nozzle size. The mechanical properties of these microfiber scaffolds varied with microfiber diameter. Additionally, the porosity of scaffolds was determined by combining experimental data with mathematical modeling. To test the cytocompatability of these fibrous scaffolds, we seeded neural progenitors derived from murine R1 embryonic stem cell lines onto these scaffolds where they could survive, migrate, and differentiate into neurons, demonstrating the potential of these melt electrospun scaffolds for tissue engineering applications.
Description
Keywords
melt electrospinning, microfibers, micro structure, scaffolds, neural tissue engineering, stem cells
Citation
Ko, J., Mohtaram, N.K., Ahmed, F., Montgomery, A., Carlson, M., Lee, P.C.D. … Jun, M.B.G. (2014). Fabrication of poly (ε-caprolactone) microfiber scaffolds with varying topography and mechanical properties for stem cell-based tissue engineering applications. Journal of Biomaterials Science—Polymer Edition, 25(1), 1-17.