Electrospun fibrous scaffolds from novel poly(ester urethane urea) and poly(dioxanone) for vascular tissue regeneration

I. STANISHEVSKAYA; V. THOMAS; P.C. CARACCIOLO; G.A. ABRAHAM; Y.K. VOHRA

Granada, España

Congreso; European Polymer Congress EPF 2011, XII Congress of the Specialized Group of Polymers GEP; 2011

European Polymer Federation

Electrospinning is an enabling fabrication technique for creating micro/nanofibrous tissue-scaffolds having extracellular matrix-like environment with tailored properties for tissue engineering and drug delivery applications [1]. The scaffolds intended for use in cardiac and vascular tissue regeneration have to undergo repeated cyclic flexing with respect to blood flow with little or no hysteresis. Segmented poly(ester urethane urea)s are elastomeric polymers with good biocompatibility, soft-tissue mechanical properties and controlled degradation characteristics. The preparation and characterization of an aliphatic segmented poly(ester urethane urea) (PHH) was recently reported [2,3]. Polydioxanone (PDO) is a semicrystalline, flexible and biodegradable polymer whose mechanical strength is capable of withstanding pulsatile blood flow and that possesses shape memory, preventing kink formation in vascular structures. In this study, electrospun fibrous of PHH/PDO blends were obtained and its properties were compared with the corresponding scaffolds prepared with the single components. The meshes were characterized for their biomechanical properties, in both dry and hydrated conditions, and structural and morphological properties for soft-tissue engineering applications.