FABRICATION AND CHARACTERIZATION OF CALCIUM SILICATE SCAFFOLDS FOR TISSUE ENGINEERING

Calcium silicate ( CaSiO 3) is a promising material due to its favorable biological properties. However, it was difficult to fabricate ceramic scaffolds with interconnected porous structure via conventional technology. In present study, CaSiO 3 scaffolds with totally interconnected pores were fabricated via selective laser sintering (SLS). The microstructure, mechanical and biological properties were examined. The results revealed that the powder gradually fused together with the reduction of voids and the elimination of particle boundary as the laser power increased in the range of 3–15 W with scanning electron microscope. Meanwhile the low-temperature phase (β- CaSiO 3) transformed into high-temperature phase (α- CaSiO 3) gradually, which decreased the mechanical properties of the obtained scaffolds. Besides, the compressive strength increased from 12.9 ± 2.34 MPa to 18.19 ± 1.24 MPa (the laser power is 12 w) and then decreased gradually with increasing laser power. In vitro biological properties of CaSiO 3 scaffolds sintered under optimal conditions indicated that the distribution of apatite mineralization became uniform as the amount of them increased after being immersed in simulated body fluids. In the meantime, the thin cytoplasmic extensions of MG-63 cells increased until formed a dense cell layer after 1–5 days of cell culture. The results suggested that the CaSiO 3 scaffold fabricated via SLS has potential application for bone tissue engineering.

DEVELOPMENT OF COMPLEX POROUS POLYVINYL ALCOHOL SCAFFOLDS: MICROSTRUCTURE, MECHANICAL, AND BIOLOGICAL EVALUATIONS

Complex three-dimensional (3D) porous scaffolds with macro-pore size of 400–800 μm based on polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) powder were successfully developed by selective laser sintering (SLS) technology. The PVA scaffolds had customizable shape, controlled and totally interconnected porous structure, and high porosity. The microstructure and mechanical property were performed for their suitability for tissue engineering (TE). The results showed that PVA did not decompose while the degree of crystallization decreased in a given sintering condition. Moreover, there were micro-pores with sizes of 20–100 μm in the scaffold. The actual porosity of sintered scaffolds could be up to 82.35%, which was higher than the value of the designed models. An in vitro biocompatibility test showed MG-63 cells could well spread on the scaffold surface. The presented work demonstrates the favorable potential of PVA powder as TE scaffolds fabricated via SLS.

Spongiosa primary development: a biochemical hypothesis by Turing patterns formations

We propose a biochemical model describing the formation of primary spongiosa architecture through a bioregulatory model by metalloproteinase 13 (MMP13) and vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF). It is assumed that MMP13 regulates cartilage degradation and the VEGF allows vascularization and advances in the ossification front through the presence of osteoblasts. The coupling of this set of molecules is represented by reaction-diffusion equations with parameters in the Turing space, creating a stable spatiotemporal pattern that leads to the formation of the trabeculae present in the spongy tissue. Experimental evidence has shown that the MMP13 regulates VEGF formation, and it is assumed that VEGF negatively regulates MMP13 formation. Thus, the patterns obtained by ossification may represent the primary spongiosa formation during endochondral ossification. Moreover, for the numerical solution, we used the finite element method with the Newton-Raphson method to approximate partial differential nonlinear equations. Ossification patterns obtained may represent the primary spongiosa formation during endochondral ossification.