Evaluation of morphology and cell behaviour of a novel synthesized electrospun poly(vinyl pyrrolidone)/poly(vinyl alcohol)/hydroxyapatite nanofibers

Three-dimensional structures such as nanofibrous scaffolds are being used in biomedical engineering as well as provide a site for cells to attach and proliferate leading to tissue formation. In the present study, poly(vinyl pyrrolidone) (PVP)/ poly(vinyl alcohol)(PVA) hybrid nanofibrous scaffold was synthesized by electrospinning.
The effect of adding nano hydroxyapatite (n-HA) and also Epoxypropoxy-propyl-trimethoxysilane (EPPTMS) as a crosslinking agent on morphology and cell behaviour of the nanofibers was investigated.
Scanning electron microscope (SEM) observations showed that all kinds of nanofibers represented uniform and well-ordered morphologies without formation of any beads by controlling the synthesis parameters. The average ûber diameter of PVP-PVA was 260 nm. n-HA was synthesized by wet chemical process. The synthesized n-HA was characterized by XRD for structural analysis. Transmission electron microscope (TEM) revealed that HA particles had nanosized dimensions (in the range of 40-100 nm). The presence of n-HA within electrospun PVP-PVA nanofibers was confirmed by XRD and Fourier transmission infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) analyses. The average ûber diameter was decreased to 136 nm when n-HA was added in the composition of PVP-PVA. FTIR analysis depicted that PVP-PVA nanofibers were linked to EPPTMS as a biocompatible material by the covalent bond. Although adding n-HA caused to decrease the diameter of PVP-PVA nanofibers, addition of EPPTMS within PVP/PVA/n-HA nanofibers induced increasing distribution of fiber diameter as it enhanced to 195nm. In addition, the proper proliferation of G292 osteoblastic cells without any cytotoxicity was observed for the nanofiber.
Since these materials have been known as biomaterials, PVP/PVA/n-HA-EPPTMS nanofibers can be propounded as a good candidate for bone tissue engineering application.