Modification and characterization of an innovative polyvinyl alcohol-45S5 bioactive glass nanocomposite scaffold containing Donepezil hydrochloride for bone tissue engineering applications

•Scaffold contained Polyvinyl Alcohol, Bioactive Glass and Donepezil was prepared.•Physicochemical properties, cytotoxicity, and osteogenic capacity was investigated.•This scaffold promotes Cell Viability, Calcium Biomineralization and ALP activity. The bone tissue engineering field is in desperate need of a suitable scaffold. We synthesized a polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) based scaffold and modified it by adding bioglass (BG) and Donepezil hydrochloride (DPH) to offset the lack of bioactivity and promote bone induction. XRD and FTIR analysis corroborated the successful chemical bonding of the compounds within the scaffold. Incorporating DPH leads to accelerated degradation and enhanced swelling of the composite. MTT and Acridine orange manifested increased adherence, viability, growth and proliferation of PVA/BG/DPH. Further, following osteogenic induction, PVA/BG/DPH directed hMSCs to synergistically boost the level of calcium biomineralization and alkaline phosphatase (ALP) activity.