title: Development of polycaprolactone/chitosan blend porous scaffolds.
abstract: Polycaprolactone (PCL) and chitosan were blended to fabricate porous scaffolds for tissue-engineering applications by employing a concentrated acetic acid solution as solvent and salt particles as porogen. These scaffolds showed well-controlled and interconnected porous structures. The pore size and porosity of the scaffolds could be effectively modulated by selecting appropriate amounts and sizes of porogen. The results obtained from compressive mechanical measurements indicated that PCL/chitosan could basically retain their strength in their dry state compared to individual components. In a hydrated state, their compressive stress and modulus could be still well maintained even though the weight ratio of chitosan reached around 50 wt%.
authors.affiliation: Advanced Biomaterials and Tissue Engineering Center, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, 430074, People's Republic of China. ying_x_wan@yahoo.ca
authors.forename: Ying
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Wan
authors.forename: Bo
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Xiao
authors.forename: Siqin
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Dalai
authors.forename: Xiaoying
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Cao
authors.forename: Quan
authors.initials: Q
authors.lastname: Wu
mesh_terms: D001672:Biocompatible Materials / Q000737:chemistry; D048271:Chitosan / Q000737:chemistry*; D019245:Compressive Strength; D008422:Materials Testing; D008855:Microscopy, Electron, Scanning; D008970:Molecular Weight; D011091:Polyesters / Q000737:chemistry*; D054457:Tissue Scaffolds / Q000737:chemistry*; D014783:Viscosity
chemical_list: D001672:Biocompatible Materials; D011091:Polyesters; C016240:polycaprolactone; D048271:Chitosan