title: Additive manufacturing of poly[(R)-3-hydroxybutyrate-co-(R)-3-hydroxyhexanoate] scaffolds for engineered bone development.
abstract: A wide range of poly(hydroxyalkanoate)s (PHAs), a class of biodegradable polyesters produced by various bacteria grown under unbalanced conditions, have been proposed for the fabrication of tissue-engineering scaffolds. In this study, the manufacture of poly[(R)-3-hydroxybutyrate-co-(R)-3-hydroxyhexanoate] (or PHBHHx) scaffolds, by means of an additive manufacturing technique based on a computer-controlled wet-spinning system, was investigated. By optimizing the processing parameters, three-dimensional scaffolds with different internal architectures were fabricated, based on a layer-by-layer approach. The resulting scaffolds were characterized by scanning electron microscopy, which showed good control over the fibre alignment and a fully interconnected porous network, with porosity in the range 79-88%, fibre diameter 47-76 µm and pore size 123-789 µm. Moreover, the resulting fibres presented an internal porosity connected to the external fibre surface as a consequence of the phase-inversion process governing the solidification of the polymer solution. Scaffold compressive modulus and yield stress and strain could be varied in a certain range by changing the architectural parameters. Cell-culture experiments employing the MC3T3-E1 murine pre-osteoblast cell line showed good cell proliferation after 21 days of culture. The PHBHHx scaffolds demonstrated promising results in terms of cell differentiation towards an osteoblast phenotype. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
authors.affiliation: Laboratory of Bioactive Polymeric Materials for Biomedical and Environmental Applications (BIOLab), Department of Chemistry and Industrial Chemistry, University of Pisa, Italy.
authors.forename: Carlos
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Mota
authors.affiliation: Department of Biological Sciences and Biotechnology, School of Life Science, Tsinghua University, Beijing, People's Republic of China.
authors.forename: Shen-Yu
authors.initials: SY
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.affiliation: Laboratory of Bioactive Polymeric Materials for Biomedical and Environmental Applications (BIOLab), Department of Chemistry and Industrial Chemistry, University of Pisa, Italy.
authors.forename: Dario
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Puppi
authors.affiliation: Laboratory of Bioactive Polymeric Materials for Biomedical and Environmental Applications (BIOLab), Department of Chemistry and Industrial Chemistry, University of Pisa, Italy.
authors.forename: Matteo
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Gazzarri
authors.affiliation: Laboratory of Bioactive Polymeric Materials for Biomedical and Environmental Applications (BIOLab), Department of Chemistry and Industrial Chemistry, University of Pisa, Italy.
authors.forename: Chiara
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Migone
authors.affiliation: Laboratory of Bioactive Polymeric Materials for Biomedical and Environmental Applications (BIOLab), Department of Chemistry and Industrial Chemistry, University of Pisa, Italy.
authors.forename: Federica
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Chiellini
authors.affiliation: Department of Biological Sciences and Biotechnology, School of Life Science, Tsinghua University, Beijing, People's Republic of China.
authors.forename: Guo-Qiang
authors.initials: GQ
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.affiliation: Laboratory of Bioactive Polymeric Materials for Biomedical and Environmental Applications (BIOLab), Department of Chemistry and Industrial Chemistry, University of Pisa, Italy.
authors.forename: Emo
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Chiellini
mesh_terms: D020155:3-Hydroxybutyric Acid / Q000737:chemistry*; D016475:3T3 Cells; D000469:Alkaline Phosphatase / Q000737:chemistry; D000818:Animals; D001672:Biocompatible Materials / Q000737:chemistry*; D001846:Bone Development; D018786:Bone Substitutes / Q000737:chemistry; D002208:Caproates / Q000737:chemistry*; D002448:Cell Adhesion; D002454:Cell Differentiation; D049109:Cell Proliferation; D002470:Cell Survival; D017886:Durapatite; D008422:Materials Testing; D051379:Mice; D010006:Osteoblasts / Q000166:cytology; D010641:Phenotype; D011091:Polyesters; D016062:Porosity; D023822:Tissue Engineering / Q000379:methods*; D054457:Tissue Scaffolds / Q000737:chemistry*
chemical_list: D001672:Biocompatible Materials; D018786:Bone Substitutes; D002208:Caproates; D011091:Polyesters; C045051:3-hydroxyhexanoic acid; D017886:Durapatite; D000469:Alkaline Phosphatase; D020155:3-Hydroxybutyric Acid
keywords: additive manufacturing; poly(hydroxyalkanoate)s; poly[(R)-3-hydroxybutyrate-co-(R)-3-hydroxyhexanoate]; rapid prototyping; scaffold; tissue engineering; wet-spinning