Amoxicillin-loaded electrospun scaffolds based on polycaprolactone and nano hydroxyapatite for dental applications

RIVERO GUADALUPE; FURTOS, GABRIEL; ABRAHAM, GUSTAVO A.

Santa Fé, Argentina

Simposio; XI Simposio Argentino de Polímeros; 2015

In guided bone regeneration, a barrier membrane is used to prevent fibroblastic cells from colonizing an intraosseous wound during healing, allowing a slow migration of bone cells to fill the defect and regenerate the bone. In this work, porous matrices composed of PCL and nHAp loaded with amoxicillin (AMX) were designed for biomedical applications in the dental field. Membranes based on poly(-caprolactone) (PCL) can be slowly biodegraded without producing a local acidic environment. Nanohydroxyapatite (nHAp) has good biocompatibility, bioactivity, high osteoconductive, and/or osteoinductive properties. Finally, an antimicrobial property is essential to control and/or reduce bacterial contamination of the periodontal defect to enhance periodontal regeneration. Different fibrous nanocomposites were obtained by varying the concentration of nHAp (0-20%) and antibiotic (0, 1 and 1.5%) incorporated in the composition. Uniform fibers were produced in all cases, with an average diameter of ~1.7 ± 0.5 µm. The structural, morphological, surface and thermal properties were characterized by scanning electron microscopy (SEM, EDAX), contact angle measurements and Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR-ATR) and differential scanning calorimetry (DSC). The presence of nHAp was evidenced by thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) and X-ray diffraction (XRD), revealing certain crystallinity. Amoxicillin incorporated in the matrices was quantified by ultraviolet-visible (UV-vis) spectroscopy and its bactericidal effect was tested. The antimicrobial activity of the different compositions depends on both the drug and the nHAp content. The incorporation of AMX seems to alter the nHAp distribution within the matrix. When loaded with the antibiotic, nHAp is distributed within the matrices and not only in the surface. The bioactivity of the specimens was assessed by evaluating their ability to form apatite on their surfaces in simulated body fluid (SBF) for 21 days. Biomineralization, evidenced by SEM/EDAX, increases slightly with the nHAp content. The electrospun nanocomposite amoxicillin-loaded scaffolds could be a promising biodegradable material for dental applications.