Novel three-dimensional nerve tissue engineering scaffolds and its biocompatibility with Schwann cells

摘要

To develop a novel scaffolding method for the copolymers poly lactide-co-glycolide acid (PLGA) to construct a three-dimensional (3-D) scaffold and explore its biocompatibility through culturing Schwann cells (SCs) on it. Methods: The 3-D scaffolds were made by means of melt spinning, extension and weaving. The queueing disci-pline of the micro-channels were observed under a scan-ning electronic microscope (SEM).The sizes of the micropores and the factors of porosity were also measured. Sciatic nerves were harvested from 3-day-old Sprague Dawley (SD) rats for culture of SCs. SCs were separated, purified, and then implanted on PLGA scaffolds, gelatin sponge and poly-L-lysine (PLL)-coated tissue culture poly-styrene (TCPS) were used as biomaterial and cell-support-ive controls, respectively. The effect of PLGA on the adherence, proliferation and apoptosis of SCs were exam-ined in vitro in comparison with gelatin sponge and TCPS. Results: The micro-channels arrayed in parallel manners, and the pore sizes of the channels were uniform. No significant difference was found in the activity of Schwann cells cultured on PLEA and those on TCPS (P>0.05), and the DNA of PLGA scaffolds was not damaged. Conclusion: The 3-D scaffolds developed in this study have excellent structure and biocompatibility, which may be taken as a novel scaffold candidate for nerve-tissue engineering.