Elaboración de andamios biológicos mediante lixiviación de microesferas para aplicaciones biomédicas

Abstract

Bone defects are one of the main global health problems, and the scarcity of conventional substitutes to treat this deficiency is a clinical disadvantage. Thus, bone tissue engineering (BTE) through the combination of cells, growth factors and scaffolds has emerged as a promising alternative in the regeneration of functional tissues. In this study, chitosan and polycaprolactone (PCL) biological scaffolds (ABs) were prepared by leaching gelatin microspheres at different concentrations of 25, 50 and 75 percent in order to evaluate their impact on morphological, mechanical and biological properties. Macroporous and microporous scaffolds (90 to 600 micrometers) were obtained, the scaffolds with a higher concentration of microspheres presented a porosity of 85.29 percent, proving to be more favorable on the other properties of the ABs, with a water vapor transmission rate of 117. 18 grams per square meter per-24 hours, a water absorption capacity of 249.02 percent and a biodegradability of 31.09 and 54.41 percent in simulated body fluid (SBF), and blood plasma respectively, differing only in mechanical properties with a modulus of elasticity of 386.70 kilopascals, which indicated a lower stiffness of the material. The resulting ABs demonstrated suitable properties that can be applied in ITO, depending on the characteristics, scaffolds with higher porosity for spongy bones and rapid cell integration, and scaffolds with lower porosity for dense bones requiring higher mechanical strength.