Direct UV-Triggered Thiol-ene Cross-Linking of Electrospun Polyester Fibers from Unsaturated Poly(macrolactone)s and Their Drug Loading by Solvent Swelling

Fernando C.S. De Oliveira, Dinorath Olvera, Michael J. Sawkins, Sally Ann Cryan, Scott D. Kimmins, Tatiane Eufrasio Da Silva, Daniel J. Kelly, Garry P. Duffy, Cathal Kearney, Andreas Heise

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

20 Scopus citations

Abstract

Electrospinning is considered a relatively simple and versatile technique to form high porosity porous scaffolds with micron to nanoscale fibers for biomedical applications. Here, electrospinning of unsaturated aliphatic polyglobalide (PGl) into well-defined fibers with an average diameter of 9 μm is demonstrated. Addition of a dithiol cross-linker and a photoinitiator to the polymer solution enabled the UV-triggered intracross-linking of the fibers during the spinning process. The in situ cross-linking of the fibers resulted in amorphous material able to swell up to 14% in tetrahydrofurane (THF) without losing the fiber morphology. Seeding mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) onto both cross-linked and non-cross-linked PGl fibers proved their compatibility with MSCs and suitability as scaffolds for cell growth and proliferation of MSCs. Moreover, the ability to directly load cross-linked PGl with hydrophobic molecules by soaking the fiber mesh in solution is shown with Rhodamine B and Indomethacin, a hydrophobic anti-inflammatory drug. This marks an advantage over conventional aliphatic polyesters and opens opportunities for the design of drug loaded polyester scaffolds for biomedical applications or tissue engineering.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)4292-4298
Number of pages7
JournalBiomacromolecules
Volume18
Issue number12
DOIs
StatePublished - 11 Dec 2017
Externally publishedYes

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