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Lookup NU author(s): Dr Priscila MeloORCiD, Dr Ana Ferreira-DuarteORCiD, Dr Kevin WaldronORCiD, Dr Piergiorgio GentileORCiD, Professor Kenneth Dalgarno
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License (CC BY-NC-ND).
Composites have clinical application for their ability to mimic the hierarchical structure of human tissues. In tissue engineering applications the use of degradable biopolymer matrices reinforced by bioactive ceramics is seen as a viable process to increase osteoconductivity and accelerate tissue regeneration, and technologies such as additive manufacturing provide the design freedom needed to create patient-specific implants with complex shapes and controlled porous structures. In this study a medical grade poly(L-lactide) (PLLA) was used as matrix while apatite-wollastonite (AW) was used as reinforcement (5 wt% loading). Premade rods of composite were pelletized and processed to create a filament with an average diameter of 1.6 mm, using a twin-screw extruder. The resultant filament was 3D printed into three types of porous woodpile samples: PLLA, PLLA reinforced with AW particles, and PLLA with short AW fibres. None of the samples degraded in phosphate buffered solution over a period of 8 weeks, and an average effective modulus of 0.8 GPa, 1 GPa and 1.5 GPa was obtained for the polymer, particle and fibre composites, respectively. Composite samples immersed in simulated body fluid exhibited bioactivity, producing a surface apatite layer. Furthermore, cell viability and differentiation were demonstrated for human mesenchymal stromal cells for all sample types, with mineralisation detected solely for biocomposites. It is concluded that both composites have potential for use in critical size bone defects, with the AW fibre composite showing greater levels of ion release, stimulating more rapid cell proliferation and greater levels of mineralisation.
Author(s): Melo P, Ferreira A-M, Waldron K, Swift T, Gentile P, Magallanes M, Marshall M, Dalgarno K
Publication type: Article
Publication status: Published
Journal: Composites Science and Technology
Year: 2019
Volume: 184
Print publication date: 10/11/2019
Online publication date: 25/09/2019
Acceptance date: 24/09/2019
Date deposited: 24/09/2019
ISSN (print): 0266-3538
ISSN (electronic): 1879-1050
Publisher: Elsevier
URL: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.compscitech.2019.107834
DOI: 10.1016/j.compscitech.2019.107834
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