Development of Fe3O4 integrated polymer/phosphate glass composite scaffolds for bone tissue engineering

Abstract

Magnetic nanoparticle (MNP) integrated biomimetic scaffolds are receiving a lot of attention for the repair of bone defects and in bone tissue engineering applications. In the present work, Fe₃O₄ MNP integrated polymer/phosphate glass (CG/PG/MNP) composite scaffolds developed using a freeze drying technique are reported. MNP integrated CG/PG composite scaffolds were highly porous in nature with pores of size ranging between 20 and 150 μm and the pores were typically interconnected. Integration of Fe₃O₄ with CG/PG significantly influenced the swelling and degradation behavior constructively. The CG/PG/MNP composite scaffold exhibited a soft ferromagnetic nature and the compressive modulus increased significantly with increasing MNP content. In addition, the MNP containing CG/PG composite scaffolds demonstrated good bioactivity and cytocompatibility. Based on the results, MNP integrated CG/PG composite scaffolds developed in the present study may be potential scaffolds for bone tissue engineering applications.