Fabrication of electrospun membranes based on poly(caprolactone) (PCL) and PCL/Chitosan layer by layer for tissue engineering

Abstract

Recently, in the field of tissue engineering, fabrication of three-dimensional (3D) electrospun scaffold or membrane is much emphasized. In this study, layered composite scaffolds or membranes were fabricated using two biodegradable polymers, polycaprolactone (PCL) and Chitosan layer-by-layer with multilayer electrospinning method. Characterizations of membranes were done using several techniques. Electrospun composite membrane’s surface morphology was examined using a Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) and the wettability of the material’s surface was determined using water contact angle measuring measurement (WCA). Water uptake properties of electrospun membrane were also determined. Using optimized solution concentration and electrospinning processing parameters, the composite PCL/Chitosan and PCL layer-by-layer were successfully fabricated. It was observed from SEM that the composite electrospun membranes produced consisted microfibers and nanofibers within single scaffold. The water contact angle for the double-layered composite electrospun membranes was lower than the pure PCL. The double-layered composite membrane also had higher water uptake properties compared to pure PCL scaffold.