Heterogeneous PLLA/PCL nanofibrous scaffold for bone tissue regeneration

Bone tissue engineering has become one of the most promising therapeutic methods to treat bone defects. A suitable scaffolding material to regenerate new bone tissues should have a high specific surface area, high porosity with an interconnected pore structure and a suitable surface structure which benefit cell attachment, proliferation, and differentiation. In this study, an acetone post-treatment strategy was developed to generate porous PLLA/PCL fibres with a hierarchical porous structure and good internal pore connection. After PLLA/PCL nanofibrous membranes were electrospun and collected, they were treated with acetone to generate a highly porous structure. Meanwhile, part of PCL was extracted from the fibre and enriched on the fibre surface. The cell affinity of the nanofibrous membrane was verified by human osteoblast-like cells assay. The results demonstrated that PLLA/PCL nanofibrous membranes could enhance osteoblast adhesion and proliferation. With high surface area and good mechanical properties, the heterogeneous PLLA/PCL membrane may have some potential applications in the field of bone regeneration.