Abstract
Bone regeneration requires scaffolds that possess suitable mechanical and biological properties. This study sought to develop a novel collagen-nHA biocomposite scaffold via two new methods. Firstly a stable nHA suspension was produced and added to a collagen slurry (suspension method), and secondly, porous collagen scaffolds were immersed in nHA suspension after freeze-drying (immersion method). Significantly stronger constructs were produced using both methods compared to collagen only scaffolds, with a high porosity maintained (>98.9%). It was found that Coll-nHA composite scaffolds produced by the suspension method were up to 18 times stiffer than the collagen control (5.50 ± 1.70 kPa vs. 0.30 ± 0.09 kPa). The suspension method was also more reproducible, and the quantity of nHA incorporated could be varied with greater ease than with the immersion technique. In addition, Coll-nHA composites display excellent biological activity, demonstrating their potential as bone graft substitutes in orthopaedic regenerative medicine.
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Acknowledgements
We would like to acknowledge the financial support for this study from Science Foundation Ireland (SFI); Research Frontiers Programme (06/RFP/ENM012) and President of Ireland Young Researcher Award (04/Yl1/B531). We would also like to thank Eilis McGrath, School of Electrical, Electronic and Mechanical Engineering, UCD for help with using SEM.
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Cunniffe, G.M., Dickson, G.R., Partap, S. et al. Development and characterisation of a collagen nano-hydroxyapatite composite scaffold for bone tissue engineering. J Mater Sci: Mater Med 21, 2293–2298 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10856-009-3964-1
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10856-009-3964-1