title: Preparation of degradable porous structures based on 1,3-trimethylene carbonate and D,L-lactide (co)polymers for heart tissue engineering.
abstract: Biodegradable porous scaffolds for heart tissue engineering were prepared from amorphous elastomeric (co)polymers of 1,3-trimethylene carbonate (TMC) and D,L-lactide (DLLA). Leaching of salt from compression-molded polymer-salt composites allowed the preparation of highly porous structures in a reproducible fashion. By adjusting the salt particle size and the polymer-to-particle weight ratio in the polymer-salt composite preparation the pore size and porosity of the scaffolds could be precisely controlled. The thermal properties of the polymers used for scaffold preparation had a strong effect on the morphology, mechanical properties and dimensional stability of the scaffolds under physiological conditions. Interconnected highly porous structures (porosity, 94%; average pore size, 100 microm) based on a TMC-DLLA copolymer (19:81, mol%) had suitable mechanical properties and displayed adequate cell-material interactions to serve as scaffolds for cardiac cells. This copolymer is noncytotoxic and allows the adhesion and proliferation of cardiomyocytes. During incubation in phosphate-buffered saline at 37 degrees C, these scaffolds were dimensionally stable and the number average molecular weight (Mn) of the polymer decreased gradually from 2.0 x 10(5) to 0.3 x 10(5) in a period up to 4 months. The first signs of mass loss (5%) were detected after 4 months of incubation. The degradation behavior of the porous structures was similar to that of nonporous films with similar composition and can be described by autocatalyzed bulk hydrolysis.
authors: Institute for Biomedical Technology and Department of Polymer Chemistry and Biomaterials, Faculty of Chemical Technology, University of Twente, Enschede, The Netherlands.
authors: A P
authors: AP
authors: Pêgo
authors: B
authors: B
authors: Siebum
authors: M J A
authors: MJ
authors: Van Luyn
authors: X J
authors: XJ
authors: Gallego y Van Seijen
authors: A A
authors: AA
authors: Poot
authors: D W
authors: DW
authors: Grijpma
authors: J
authors: J
authors: Feijen
mesh_terms: D001672:Biocompatible Materials / Q000138:chemical synthesis; D042783:Endothelial Cells; D008855:Microscopy, Electron, Scanning; D009206:Myocardium; D011108:Polymers / Q000138:chemical synthesis; D023822:Tissue Engineering
chemical_list: D001672:Biocompatible Materials; D011108:Polymers