Biomechanical Behaviors and Degradation Properties of Multilayered Polymer Scaffolds: The Phase Space Method for Bile Duct Design and Bioengineering

Abstract

This article reports the electrospinning technique for the manufacturing of multilayered scaffolds for bile duct tissue engineering based on an inner layer of polycaprolactone (PCL) and an outer layer either of a copolymer of D,L-lactide and glycolide (PLGA) or a copolymer of L-lactide and ε-caprolactone (PLCL). A study of the degradation properties of separate polymers showed that flat PCL samples exhibited the highest resistance to hydrolysis in comparison with PLGA and PLCL. Irrespective of the liquid-phase nature, no significant mass loss of PCL samples was found in 140 days of incubation. The PLCL- and PLGA-based flat samples were more prone to hydrolysis within the same period of time, which was confirmed by the increased loss of mass and a significant reduction of weight-average molecular mass. The study of the mechanical properties of developed multi-layered tubular scaffolds revealed that their strength in the longitudinal and transverse directions was comparable with the values measured for a decellularized bile duct. The strength of three-layered scaffolds declined significantly because of the active degradation of the outer layer made of PLGA. The strength of scaffolds with the PLCL outer layer deteriorated much less with time, both in the axial (p-value = 0.0016) and radial (p-value = 0.0022) directions. A novel method for assessment of the physiological relevance of synthetic scaffolds was developed and named the phase space approach for assessment of physiological relevance. Two-dimensional phase space (elongation modulus and tensile strength) was used for the assessment and visualization of the physiological relevance of scaffolds for bile duct bioengineering. In conclusion, the design of scaffolds for the creation of physiologically relevant tissue-engineered bile ducts should be based not only on biodegradation properties but also on the biomechanical time-related behavior of various compositions of polymers and copolymers.

Distribution, Typical Structure and Self-Assembly Properties of Collagen from Fish Skin and Bone

“…More proline and hydroxyproline increased the thermal stability of collagen because of a higher density of crosslinks [ 30 ], which can also be improved by chitin nanofibers for the usage as scaffolds and wound-dressing materials [ 31 ]. Klabukov et al [ 32 ] found that the copolymer had a higher stability and the ability to resist hydrolysis.…”

Overview of Electrospinning for Tissue Engineering Applications

“…While with respect to inadequate mechanical strength, the incorporation of the inorganic phase with electrospun materials and postprocessing modification are the best methods to overcome this limitation, as doing so can fabricate electrospun scaffolds with increased structural and mechanical strength [40]. Furthermore, several experiments have been conducted to produce multilayered and heterogeneous scaffolds with predictable mechanical properties [92,93].…”

Electrospun Drug-Loaded and Gene-Loaded Nanofibres: The Holy Grail of Glioblastoma Therapy?

“…To ensure the integrity of the regional tissue microenvironment, the mechanical properties of engineered scaffolds must match the normal tissue morphogenesis [ 96 ]. The stiffness of the brain tissue is usually used as a yardstick when discussing mechanical mismatch between engineered biomaterials and brain tissue.…”