A Multimaterial Scaffold With Tunable Properties: Toward Bone Tissue Repair.

ABSTRACT: Polyetheretherketone (PEEK)/β-tricalcium phosphate (β-TCP) scaffolds are expected to be able to combine the excellent mechanical strength of PEEK and the good bioactivity and biodegradability of β-TCP. While PEEK acts as a closed membrane in which β-TCP is completely wrapped after the melting/solidifying processing, the PEEK membrane degrades very little, hence the scaffolds cannot display bioactivity and biodegradability. The strategy reported here is to blend a biodegradable polymer with PEEK and β-TCP to fabricate multi-material scaffolds via selective laser sintering (SLS). The biodegradable polymer first degrades and leaves caverns on the closed membrane, and then the wrapped β-TCP is exposed to body fluid. In this study, poly(l-lactide) (PLLA) is adopted as the biodegradable polymer.

SUBMITTER: Feng P 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6033191 | biostudies-literature | 2018 Jun

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature