title: The surface grafting of graphene oxide with poly(ethylene glycol) as a reinforcement for poly(lactic acid) nanocomposite scaffolds for potential tissue engineering applications.
abstract: Graphene oxide (GO) was incorporated into poly(lactic acid) (PLA) as a reinforcing nanofiller to produce composite nanofibrous scaffolds using the electrospinning technique. To improve the dispersion of GO in PLA and the interfacial adhesion between the filler and matrix, GO was surface-grafted with poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG). Morphological, thermal, mechanical, and wettability properties, as well as preliminary cytocompatibility with Swiss mouse NIH 3T3 cells of PLA, PLA/GO, and PLA/GO-g-PEG electrospun nanofibers, were characterized. Results showed that the average diameter of PLA/GO-g-PEG electrospun nanofibers decreased with filler content. Both GO and GO-g-PEG improved the thermal stability of PLA, but GO-g-PEG was more effective. The water contact angle test of the nanofiber mats showed that the addition of GO in PLA did not change the surface wettability of the materials, but PLA/GO-g-PEG samples exhibited improved wettability with lower water contact angles. The tensile strength of the composite nanofiber mats was improved with the addition of GO, and it was further enhanced when GO was surface grafted with PEG. This suggested that improved interfacial adhesion between GO and PLA was achieved by grafting PEG onto the GO. The cell viability and proliferation results showed that the cytocompatibility of PLA was not compromised with the addition of GO and GO-g-PEG. With enhanced mechanical properties as well as good wettability and cytocompatibility, PLA/GO-g-PEG composite nanofibers have the potential to be used as scaffolds in tissue engineering.
authors.affiliation: College of Chemistry and Materials Engineering, Guiyang University, Guiyang 550005, China; Wisconsin Institute for Discovery, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI 53706, USA; State Key Laboratory of Polymer Materials Engineering, Sichuan University, Chengdu 610065, China. Electronic address: zhangzhang_87@126.com.
authors.forename: Chunmei
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.affiliation: Department of Biomedical Engineering, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI 53706, USA.
authors.forename: Liwei
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.affiliation: Wisconsin Institute for Discovery, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI 53706, USA; State Key Laboratory of Polymer Materials Engineering, Sichuan University, Chengdu 610065, China.
authors.forename: Tianliang
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Zhai
authors.affiliation: Wisconsin Institute for Discovery, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI 53706, USA.
authors.forename: Xinchao
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.affiliation: State Key Laboratory of Polymer Materials Engineering, Sichuan University, Chengdu 610065, China.
authors.forename: Yi
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Dan
authors.affiliation: Wisconsin Institute for Discovery, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI 53706, USA. Electronic address: turng@engr.wisc.edu.
authors.forename: Lih-Sheng
authors.initials: LS
authors.lastname: Turng
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001672:Biocompatible Materials / Q000737:chemistry / Q000494:pharmacology; D006108:Graphite / Q000737:chemistry*; D019344:Lactic Acid / Q000737:chemistry*; D055595:Mechanical Phenomena; D051379:Mice; D041681:NIH 3T3 Cells; D053761:Nanocomposites / Q000737:chemistry*; D010087:Oxides / Q000737:chemistry*; D011091:Polyesters; D011092:Polyethylene Glycols / Q000737:chemistry*; D011108:Polymers / Q000737:chemistry*; D013696:Temperature; D023822:Tissue Engineering; D054457:Tissue Scaffolds / Q000737:chemistry*; D014867:Water / Q000737:chemistry; D017155:Wettability
chemical_list: D001672:Biocompatible Materials; D010087:Oxides; D011091:Polyesters; D011108:Polymers; D014867:Water; D019344:Lactic Acid; D011092:Polyethylene Glycols; C033616:poly(lactide); D006108:Graphite
keywords: Graphene oxide; Poly(ethylene glycol); Poly(lactic acid); Tissue engineering