Nano Scaffold for Bone Tissue Engineering

Iranian researchers at Isfahan University of Technology, in association with researchers from Tehran Medical University, produced a nanocomposite scaffold that can be used in bone tissue engineering.

“We have made efforts to produce biodegradable and bioactive nanocomposite scaffold by using polycaprolactone/fluoro-hydroxyapatite nanoparticles for bone tissue engineering purposes. We wanted the nanocomposite scaffold to have better behavior and solubility rate in comparison with polycaprolactone/hydroxyl apatite scaffolds,” Narges Johari, one of the researchers, told Fars News Agency.
“To this end, we firstly produced a porous nanocomposite scaffold containing four various weight percentages of fluoro-hydroxyapatite nanoparticles. Then, we characterized the microstructure, morphology, porosity, and mechanical properties of the nanocomposite, and we studied its bioactivity in the simulated body fluid (SBF), its degradability in phosphate buffered saline (PBS) solution, and its biocompatibility and cellular non-toxicity.”

Fluoro-hydroxyapatite nanoparticles used in the production of nanocomposite scaffolds contained 25, 50, 75 and 100 percent of fluor ion replacement in their structure.
Elaborating on the obtained results, the researcher said, “The results showed that as the replacement of fluor ion increases in fluoro-hydroxyapatite that played a strengthening role in the structure of nanocomposite scaffold of polycaprolactone/fluoro-hydroxyapatite, pressure strength of the scaffold decreases but its biodegradability increases.”

Generally, the optimum nanocomposite scaffold for bone tissue engineering contains 40 percent of fluoro-hydroxyapatite nanoparticles with a porosity of 75 percent, while 25 percent of fluor ion replacement existed in its structure.
Researchers of the project seek mass production of the product when studies about its effect inside the body are completed.