Development of macroporous nanocomposite scaffolds of gelatin/bioactive glass prepared through layer solvent casting combined with lamination technique for bone tissue engineering

In this study, macroporous bioactive nanocomposite scaffolds were developed using cross-linked gelatin and bioactive glass (BaG) nanoparticles. First, BaG nanoparticles were synthesized via sol-gel method and characterized. Then, macroporous nanocomposites were prepared through layer solvent casting combined with freeze-drying and lamination techniques. This research has developed a new composition to produce a new bioactive nanocomposite which is porous with three-dimensional (3D) inter-connected microstructure, pore sizes are 200-500 mu m, porosity are 72-86% and BaG nanoparticles are dispersed evenly among cross-linked gelatin matrices. It is mentionable that in this study, we have reported the formation of chemical bonds between BaG nanoparticles and gelatin for the first time. Finally, the in vitro cytocompatibility of the nanocomposite scaffolds was tested using SaOS-2 cell line. (C) 2010 Elsevier Ltd and Techna Group S.r.l. All rights reserved.