Fabrication of a chitosan/bioglass three-dimensional porous scaffold for bone tissue engineering applications

Bone defects caused by trauma and disease have become urgent problems. Three-dimensional (3D) porous scaffolds for bone tissue engineering should ideally have an interconnected porous structure, good biocompatibility and mechanical properties similar to those of natural bones. In the present study, a chitosan/bioglass (CS/BG) 3D porous scaffold was constructed by initially preparing a CS fibre 3D porous scaffold by needle-punching, and then depositing BG on the scaffold by dip-coating. The CS/BG 3D porous scaffold had an interconnected porous structure, with a porosity of 77.52% and a pore size around 50 μm. Water absorption values of the CS fibre 3D porous scaffold and the corresponding CS/BG scaffold were 570% and 59%, respectively. The BG present in the latter significantly decreased the swelling of the CS fibres, thus improving the stability of the scaffolds. The CS/BG 3D porous scaffold possessed good mechanical properties, with a compression strength of 7.68 ± 0.38 MPa and an elastic modulus of 0.46 ± 0.02 GPa, which are well-matched to those of trabecular bone. In vitro cell assay results demonstrated that the CS/BG 3D porous scaffold had good biocompatibility, which facilitates the spreading and proliferation of human bone marrow stromal cells (hBMSCs). The CS/BG 3D porous scaffold is thus a suitable material for bone tissue engineering.