Centre for Textile Science and Engineering, Department of Materials, Textiles and Chemical Engineering, Faculty of Engineering and Architecture, Ghent University, Tech Lane Science Park 70A, 9052 Ghent, Belgium.
Veterinary Stem Cell Research Unit, Department of Translational Physiology, Infectiology and Public Health, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Ghent University, Salisburylaan 133, 9820 Merelbeke, Belgium.
ACS Appl Mater Interfaces. 2023 Sep 13;15(36):42241-42250. doi: 10.1021/acsami.3c08241. Epub 2023 Aug 31.
Nanofibrous scaffolds are widely investigated for tendon tissue engineering due to their porous structure, high flexibility, and the ability to guide cells in a preferred direction. Previous research has shown that providing a microenvironment similar to in vivo settings improves tissue regeneration. Therefore, in this work, ingenious multicomponent nanoyarn scaffolds that mimic the fibrillar and tubular structures of tendons are developed for the first time through electrospinning and bundling nanoyarns followed by electrospinning of a nanofibrous shell around the bundle. Multicomponent nanoyarn scaffolds out of poly(ε-caprolactone) with varying porosity, density, and diameter were successfully produced by coelectrospinning with water-soluble poly(2-ethyl-2-oxazoline) as a sacrificial component. The diameter and fiber orientation of the nanoyarns were successfully tuned based on parameter-morphology models obtained by the design of experiments. Cyclic bending tests were performed, indicating that the flexibility of the multicomponent nanoyarn scaffolds depends on the morphology and can be tuned through controlling the number of nanoyarns in the bundle and the porosity. Indirect and direct cell culture tests using mouse and equine tendon cells revealed excellent cytocompatibility of the nanofibrous products and demonstrated the potential of the nanoyarns to guide the growing cells along the nanofiber direction, which is crucial for tendon tissue engineering.
纳米纤维支架由于其多孔结构、高柔韧性以及能够引导细胞沿特定方向生长的能力，被广泛应用于肌腱组织工程。先前的研究表明，提供类似于体内环境的微环境可以促进组织再生。因此，在这项工作中，通过静电纺丝和捆绑纳米纤维，首次开发出了模仿肌腱纤维状和管状结构的巧妙的多组分纳米纤维支架，然后在纤维束周围进行静电纺丝，形成纳米纤维壳。通过共静电纺丝成功制备了具有不同孔隙率、密度和直径的多组分纳米纤维支架，其中聚（ε-己内酯）作为主成分，水溶性聚（2-乙基-2-恶唑啉）作为牺牲成分。通过实验设计获得的参数-形态模型，成功地对纳米纤维的直径和纤维取向进行了调控。循环弯曲测试表明，多组分纳米纤维支架的柔韧性取决于其形态，可以通过控制纤维束中的纳米纤维数量和孔隙率进行调节。使用小鼠和马的肌腱细胞进行的间接和直接细胞培养试验表明，纳米纤维产品具有良好的细胞相容性，并证明了纳米纤维能够引导细胞沿着纳米纤维的方向生长，这对于肌腱组织工程至关重要。
