A conducive bioceramic/polymer composite biomaterial for diabetic wound healing

Publication date: Available online 14 July 2017
Source:Acta Biomaterialia
Author(s): Fang Lv, Jie Wang, Peng Xu, Yiming Han, Hongshi Ma, He Xu, Shijie Chen, Jiang Chang, Qinfei Ke, Mingyao Liu, Zhengfang Yi, Chengtie Wu
Diabetic wound is a common complication of diabetes. Biomaterials offer great promise in inducing tissue regeneration for chronic wound healing. Herein, we reported a conducive Poly (caprolactone) (PCL)/gelatin nanofibrous composite scaffold containing silicate-based bioceramic particles (Nagelschmidtite, NAGEL, Ca7P2Si2O16) for diabetic wound healing. NAGEL bioceramic particles were well distributed in the inner of PCL/gelatin nanofibers via co-electrospinning process and the Si ions maintained a sustained release from the composite scaffolds during the degradation process. The nanofibrous scaffolds significantly promoted the adhesion, proliferation and migration of human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs) and human keratinocytes (HaCaTs) in vitro. The in vivo study demonstrated that the scaffolds distinctly induced the angiogenesis, collagen deposition and re-epithelialization in the wound sites of diabetic mice model, as well as inhibited inflammation reaction. The mechanism for nanofibrous composite scaffolds accelerating diabetic wound healing is related to the activation of epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition (EMT) and endothelial mesenchymal transformation (EndMT) pathway in vivo and in vitro. Our results suggest that the released Si ions and nanofibrous structure of scaffolds have a synergetic effect on the improved efficiency of diabetic wound healing, paving the way to design functional biomaterials for tissue engineering and wound healing applications.Statement of significanceIn order to stimulate tissue regeneration for chronic wound healing, a new kind of conducive nanofibrous composite scaffold containing silicate-based bioceramic particles (Nagelschmidtite, NAGEL, Ca7P2Si2O16) were prepared via co-electrospinning process. Biological assessments revealed that the NAGEL bioceramic particles could active epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition (EMT) and endothelial mesenchymal transformation (EndMT) pathway in vitro and in vivo. The new composite scaffold had potential as functional biomaterials for tissue engineering and wound healing applications. The strategy of introducing controllable amount of therapeutic ions instead of loading expensive drugs/growth factors on nanofibrous composite scaffold provides new options for bioactive biomaterials.

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