A Novel Injectable Poly(ε-caprolactone)/Calcium Sulfate System for Bone Regeneration: Synthesis and Characterization

✍ Scribed by Annalisa La Gatta; Alfredo De Rosa; Paola Laurienzo; Mario Malinconico; Mario De Rosa; Chiara Schiraldi

• Publisher: John Wiley and Sons
• Year: 2005
• Tongue: English
• Weight: 271 KB
• Volume: 5
• Category: Article
• ISSN: 1616-5187
• DOI: 10.1002/mabi.200500114

✦ Synopsis

Abstract

Summary: A novel poly(ε‐caprolactone)/calcium sulfate system was prepared and characterized in order to enhance calcium sulfate (gypsum) performance as bone graft substitute overcoming its brittleness and fast resorption rate. A poly(ε‐caprolactone) (PCL) photo‐crosslinkable derivative (PCL~f~) was synthesized by reaction of a low molecular weight PCL diol with methacryloyl chloride and confirmed by FT‐IR and ^1^H NMR analyses. An injectable and easy mouldable mixture of PCL~f~ and calcium sulfate hemi‐hydrate (PCL~f~/CHS) was obtained. Thermal analyses and solvent extraction proved the occurrence of PCL~f~ photo‐crosslinking, even in the presence of CHS, in a time suitable for clinical applications. Swelling studies demonstrated that the encapsulation of the inorganic filler increases network hydrophilicity making it more permeable to water. Scanning electron microscopy, performed on crosslinked PCL~f~/CHS and on the same material after incubation in a PBS solution, showed the feasibility to obtain, in situ, gypsum entrapped into a degradable polymeric network. In vitro cytotoxicity tests, performed according to ISO 10993‐5, proved that the developed system was not cytotoxic supporting its potential use in tissue engineering as a new, injectable, photocurable bone graft material.

SEM micrograph of calcium sulfate di‐hydrate (gypsum) entrapped in the PCL network.

magnified imageSEM micrograph of calcium sulfate di‐hydrate (gypsum) entrapped in the PCL network.