Poly (lactic-co-glycolic)/nanostructured merwinite porous composites for bone tissue engineering: II. structural and in vitro characterization

Several characteristics of a novel PLGA/Merwinite scaffold were examined in the present study to evaluate the possible applications in bone tissue regeneration. Physical and mechanical properties, as well as degradation behavior and in vitro bioactivity of porous scaffolds produced by solvent casting and particle leaching technique were also characterized. Results showed that incorporation of merwinite particles into the porous polymer structure had a significant effect on cell viability in such a way that cell densities increased by increasing the merwinite content in the scaffolds after 3 and 7 days of culture. In contrast, mechanical analysis showed that the presence of merwinite had an adverse effect on the compressive strength of porous structures, due to the lack of formation of a chemical bond at the polymer-ceramic interface and non-homogenous distribution of the ceramic particulates through the matrix. Incorporation of the merwinite particles caused about 35% decrease in the compressive strength in samples containing 30 wt% merwinite, compared to pure PLGA porous scaffolds.