An Additive Manufacturing technique for the fabrication of three-dimensional polymeric scaffolds, based on wet-spinning of poly(ε-caprolactone) (PCL) or PCL/hydroxyapatite (HA) solutions, was developed. The processing conditions to fabricate scaffolds with a layer-by-layer approach were optimized by studying their influence on fibres morphology and alignment. Two different scaffold architectures were designed and fabricated by tuning inter-fibre distance and fibres staggering. The developed scaffolds showed good reproducibility of the internal architecture characterized by highly porous, aligned fibres with an average diameter in the range 200-250 μm. Mechanical characterization showed that the architecture and HA loading influenced the scaffold compressive modulus and strength. Cell culture experiments employing MC3T3-E1 preosteoblast cell line showed good cell adhesion, proliferation, alkaline phosphatase activity and bone mineralization on the developed scaffolds.

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The tympanic membrane (TM) is a thin tissue able to efficiently collect and transmit sound vibrations across the middle ear thanks to the particular orientation of its collagen fibers, radiate on one side and circular on the opposite side. Through the combination of advanced scaffolds and autologous cells, tissue engineering (TE) could offer valuable alternatives to autografting in major TM lesions. In this study, a multiscale approach based on electrospinning (ES) and additive manufacturing (AM) was investigated to fabricate scaffolds, based on FDA approved copolymers, resembling the anatomic features and collagen fiber arrangement of the human TM. A single scale TM scaffold was manufactured using a custom-made collector designed to confer a radial macro-arrangement to poly(lactic-co-glycolic acid) electrospun fibers during their deposition. Dual and triple scale scaffolds were fabricated combining conventional ES with AM to produce poly(ethylene oxide terephthalate)/poly(butylene terephthalate) block copolymer scaffolds with anatomic-like architecture. The processing parameters were optimized for each manufacturing method and copolymer. TM scaffolds were cultured in vitro with human mesenchymal stromal cells, which were viable, metabolically active and organized following the anisotropic character of the scaffolds. The highest viability, cell density and protein content were detected in dual and triple scale scaffolds. Our findings showed that these biomimetic micro-patterned substrates enabled cell disposal along architectural directions, thus appearing as promising substrates for developing functional TM replacements via TE.

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Three-dimensional wet-spun microfibrous meshes of a star poly(ε-caprolactone) were developed as potential scaffolds endowed with antimicrobial activity. The in vitro release kinetics of the meshes, under physiological conditions, was initially fast and then a sustained release for more than one month was observed. Cell cultures of a murine pre-osteoblast cell line showed good cell viability and adhesion on the wet-spun star poly(ε-caprolactone) fiber scaffolds. These promising results indicate a potential application of the developed meshes as engineered bone scaffolds with antimicrobial activit