Blood compatibility and physicochemical assessment of novel nanocomposite comprising polyurethane and dietary carotino oil for cardiac tissue engineering applications

Abstract

Cardiovascular diseases (CVD) were estimated to claim 17 million lives each year. Among these, coronary heart disease almost accounts 50% deaths associated with CVD, which causes the blockage of the coronary arteries that supplies blood to the heart. Nowadays, the cardiac tissue engineering have become a promising solution to overcome the drawbacks associated with current therapies. Further, the scaffold used in cardiac tissue engineering must possess thromboresistant and anticoagulant nature to serve as a plausible candidate for cardiovascular applications. In this present investigation, a novel nanocomposite based on polyurethane (PU) and carotino oil was fabricated using electrospinning. Scanning electron microscopy images indicated that the nanocomposites have smaller fiber diameter (702±130 nm) compared to the pristine PU (969±217 nm). The Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy analysis confirmed the interaction between the carotino oil and PU by the formation of hydrogen bond and shifting of CH peak. The contact angle of electrospun PU/carotino oil was found to be 119°, which was increased compared to pristine PU (86°) indicating the hydrophobic nature of developed nanocomposites. Moreover, the surface roughness and thermal stability were found to be enhanced due to the presence of carotino oil in the PU matrix indicated in atomic force microscopy and thermogravimetric analysis. The enhanced surface roughness of nanocomposites resulted in delayed activation of the blood clot as revealed in activated partial thromboplastin time and prothrombin time assay. Moreover, the hemolytic index of fabricated nanocomposites was found to very low of about 1.33% compared to pristine PU (2.73%), suggesting non-hemolytic nature and also better blood compatibility. So, the developed PU/carotino nanocomposites having desirable characteristics like better physicochemical and blood compatibility may render appropriate potentials for raw materials of cardiac tissue engineering.