Preparation and characterization of mesoporous bioactive glass/polycaprolactone nanofibrous matrix for bone tissues engineering

A polycaprolactone (PCL) nanofibrous composite matrix having mesoporous bioactive glass nanoparticles (MBG) was fabricated using the electrospinning method, and the microstructural, physical and biological properties of the composite matrix were characterized. The fiber diameters of PCL, 5 % MBG/PCL (5 M-PCL) and 10 % MBG/PCL (10 M-PCL) were 575 ± 162 nm, 312 ± 134 nm and 321 ± 144 nm, respectively. The bioactivity of the composite matrix was evaluated by soaking the matrix in 1.5× simulated body fluid; the MBG/PCL matrix showed a better biomineralization capability than did the PCL matrix. The biological performance of the PCL and the MBG/PCL were evaluated using an in vitro culture of MG63 osteoblast-like cells. We found that the cell attachment and proliferation rates were significantly higher on the 10 M-PCL than on the PCL. Moreover, the expression of several genes, including ANX-V, type I collagen and OCN, ALP activity, the deposition of calcium, and the BSP protein, were also significantly higher on 10 M-PCL than PCL. These results indicated that MBG/PCL has the ability to support cell attachment, growth, and differentiation and can also yield high bioactivity. Therefore, MBG/PCL could be potentially applied in bone implants.