3D-printed polycaprolactone scaffolds coated with beta tricalcium phosphate for bone regeneration.

BACKGROUND/PURPOSE: 3D-printing technology is an important tool for the bone tissue engineering (BTE). The aim of this study was to investigate the interaction of polycaprolactone (PCL) scaffolds and modified mesh PCL coated with beta TCP (PCL/ß-TCP) scaffolds with MG-63. METHODS: This study used the fused deposition modeling (FDM) technique with the 3D printing technique to fabricate the thermoplastic polymer and composite scaffolds. Scaffold structure and coating quality were observed under a scanning electron microscope (SEM). MG-63 cells were injected and attached to the mesh-manufactured PCL scaffolds. The biocompatibility of mesh structured PCL and PCL/ß-TCP scaffolds could be examined by measuring the viability of MG-63 cells of MTT assay. Bone cell differentiation was evaluated ALP activity by mineralization assay. RESULTS: The results showed that both mesh PCL scaffolds and PCL/ß-TCP scaffolds were non-toxic to the cells. The ALP activities of cells in PCL/ß-TCP scaffolds groups were significant differences and better than PCL groups in all groups at all experimental dates. The mineralization process was time-dependent, and significantly higher mineralization of osteosarcoma cells was observed on PCL/ß-TCP scaffolds at experimental dates. CONCLUSION: We concluded that both meshes structured PCL and PCL/ß-TCP scaffolds could promote the MG-63 cell growth, and PCL/ß-TCP was better than the PCL scaffolds for the outcome of MG63 cell differentiation and mineralization.

Interactions of neural-like cells with 3D-printed polycaprolactone with different inner diameters for neural regeneration.

Background/purpose: Peripheral neural regeneration is an interesting and challenging field. The aim of this study was to investigate the interactions of neural-like PC12 cells and Poly-D-Lysine (PDL)-coated 3D-printed polycaprolactone (PCL) scaffolds with different inner diameters of half tubular array (HTA) (0, 200, 300, and 400 µm), respectively. Materials and methods: This study used the fused deposition modeling (FDM) technique with 3D-printing to fabricate the thermoplastic polymer. Scaffold properties were measured by mechanical testing, and coating quality was observed under a scanning electron microscope (SEM). PC12 cell biocompatibility was examined by an MTT assay. Cell differentiation was evaluated by immunofluorescence staining. Results: The cell viability of PC12 cells on PDL-coated PCL scaffolds with a 200-µm inner diameter of HTA was shown with significant differences (∗P < 0.05, ∗∗P < 0.01, ∗∗∗P < 0.001) than other PCL groups at all experimental dates. The SEM observation showed that PDL-coated PCL scaffolds with 200-µm inner diameters of HTA promoted cell adhesion. An immunofluorescence staining of PC12 cells on the PDL-coated PCL scaffold with a 200-µm inner diameter of the HTA group showed that it stimulated PC12 cells for neurite formation much better than the other groups.A PDL-coated PCL scaffold with a 200-µm inner diameter of HTA can promote the growth and differentiation of PC12 cells better than other groups. It indicated that PDL-coated PCL scaffolds with a 200-µm inner diameter HTA can be used for further neural regeneration application.