Poly(ε-caprolactone) grafted dextran biodegradable electrospun matrix:: A novel scaffold for tissue engineering

The main objective of the present work was to fabricate poly (epsilon-caprolactone) grafted dextran (PGD) electrospun matrix (matrix) and to investigate the scaffold potential in tissue engineering application. In this work, at first we synthesized PGD polymer via ring opening polymerization (ROP), and with predetermined electrospinning conditions, nanofibrous matrix with high molecular weight PGD (PGD-50, M-w = 45,500) has been successfully fabricated for the first time. Mouse osteoblast like cells, MC3T3 was used to test biocompatibility, assays of cell adhesion, survival, and effects on cell morphology of the matrix. The data demonstrate that PGD-50 matrix represent a suitable substrate for supporting cell proliferation, process outgrowth and migration and as such would be a good material for artificial extra cellular matrix. (c) 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.