Gelatin (Gel) and chitosan (CTS) have several biomedical applications because of their biodegradability and biocompatibility. Crosslinking of Gel and Gel/CTS systems was evaluated using N-acetyl-D-glucosamine (GlcNAc) formed into sponges by lyophilization. The prepared sponges were used to study the adsorption and desorption of fluorescein isothiocyanate (FITC) labeled bovine serum albumin (BSA) as a model instead of a growth factor. The effect of FITC-BSA concentration and temperature on the adsorption behavior of Gel/CTS sponges was investigated. The Langmuir adsorption isotherm model was used on the basis of the assumption that monolayer adsorption occurs on the surface; the results fit with the experiment data. The adsorption constants were 5.77 and 9.68 mL/mg for Gel and Gel/CTS sponges, respectively. The adsorption thermodynamic constants were found; adsorption onto sponges was an exothermic reaction. In particular, Gibbs free energy (ΔG) exhibited negative values in the range of 283-343 K for both Gel and Gel/CTS sponges, demonstrating the spontaneous nature of adsorption reaction. In addition, desorption behavior was evaluated for different concentrations and pH values of the FITC-BSA solution. The high adsorbed amounts of FITC-BSA on sponge resulted in high desorbed amounts in sponge, up to 55% from 3.5 mg/mL adsorbed concentration (around 1.5 mg from 3 mg adsorb amount). Desorption decreased following the buffer solution pH decrease, from 7.4 to 4 and 2 in Gel and Gel/CTS sponges, respectively. Based on the results of this preliminary study, these composite sponges could have significant application in biomedical materials.
Poly(L-lactic acid) (PLA) is a biodegradable fiber, and a promising material for use in biomedical applications. However, its hydrophobicity, low hydrolyzability, and poor cell adhesion can be problematic in some cases; consequently, the development of improved PLA-based materials is required. In this study, chitosan-coated (CS-coated) PLA was prepared by plasma treatment and the layer-by-layer (LBL) method. Plasma treatment prior to CS coating effectively hydrophilized and activated the PLA surface. The LBL method was used to increase the number of CS and sodium alginate (SA) coating layers by electrostatically superposing alternating anionic and cationic polymers. The prepared fibers were characterized by tensile testing, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), nitrogen analysis and degradation testing, which revealed that the 100 W plasma treatment for 60 s was optimum, and that plasma treatment and the LBL method effectively coated CS onto the PLA fibers. The existence or not of a coating on the PLA fiber did not appear to influence the degradation of the fiber, which is ascribable to the extremely thin coating, as evidenced by nitrogen analysis and SEM. The CS-coated PLA fibers were prepared without damaging the PLA surface and can be used in biomaterial applications such as suture threads.
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