Comparison on in vitro degradation of polycaprolactone and polycaprolactone/gelatin nanofibrous scaffold

Abstract

Tissue engineering has emerged to provide a new medical therapy in helping tissue regrowth and regeneration by employing scaffold as an artificial supporting structure for cellular growth. Many polymers have been utilized in the fabrication of these artificial scaffolds, but there is still a need to fabricate hydrophilic nanofibrous scaffold with appropriate degradation rate. In this study, polycaprolactone (PCL) and polycaprolactone/gelatin (PCL/Ge) 70:30 nanofibrous scaffolds were fabricated using electrospinning technique and compared on in vitro degradation rate to determine a more suitable scaffold for skin tissue engineering application. In vitro degradation was evaluated by morphological changes, water uptake, and chemical bonding until 12 weeks. Result shows that both PCL and PCL/Ge (70:30) nanofibrous scaffolds were degraded after 8th week. However, the degradation rate of PCL nanofibrous scaffold is slower and does not has obvious morphological changes. PCL/Ge (70:30) nanofibrous scaffold with faster degradation rate have the potential for skin tissue engineering application.