Co‐delivery of tauroursodeoxycholic acid and dexamethasone using electrospun ultrafine fibers to induce early coupled angiogenesis and osteogenic differentiation

Abstract

In the complicated process of bone regeneration, osteogenic differentiation and angiogenesis are crucial. In this study, a novel dual small molecule composite electrospun scaffold was prepared using polycaprolactone embedded with angiogenic factor tauro-ursodeoxycholic acid and osteogenic factor dexamethasone to promote early angiogenesis and osteogenesis. Additionally, the related properties, angiogenic activity, and osteogenic activity analyses were conducted for the scaffold. The results demonstrated that the composite scaffold possessed proper mechanical properties and hydrophilicity. During the initial drug release, the release rate of the hydrophilic drug tauroursodeoxycholic acid was higher compared to the hydrophobic drug dexamethasonethe. The drugs were slowly sustained released for more than 528 h.The composite scaffold boosted cell proliferation and accelerated osteogenic differentiation up to 21 days. The alkaline phosphatase activity and mineral deposition were comparatively higher on dual drug-releasing fibers compared to control scaffolds. Wound healing migration assay and tube formation assay for further in vitro revealed that the composite scaffold exhibited higher efficiency in promoting cell migration and the angiogenesis ductive. Hence, the composite scaffold had a high potential for promoting bone regeneration by enhancing angiogenesis.