Electrospinning collagen/chitosan/poly(L-lactic acid-co-ε- caprolactone) to form a vascular graft: Mechanical and biological characterization

For blood vessel tissue engineering, an ideal vascular graft should possess excellent biocompatibility and mechanical properties. For this study, a elastic material of poly (L-lactic acid-co-ε-caprolactone) (P(LLA-CL)), collagen and chitosan blended scaffold at different ratios were fabricated by electrospinning. Upon fabrication, the scaffolds were evaluated to determine the tensile strength, burst pressure, and dynamic compliance. In addition, the contact angle and endothelial cell proliferation on the scaffolds were evaluated to demonstrate the structures potential to serve as a vascular prosthetic capable of in situ regeneration. The collagen/chitosan/P(LLA-CL) scaffold with the ratio of 20:5:75 reached the highest tensile strength with the value of 16.9 MPa, and it was elastic with strain at break values of ∼112%, elastic modulus of 10.3 MPa. The burst pressure strength of the scaffold was greater than 3365 mmHg and compliance value was 0.7%/100 mmHg. Endothelial cells proliferation was significantly increased on the blended scaffolds versus the P(LLA-CL). Meanwhile, the endothelial cells were more adherent based on the increase in the degree of cell spreading on the surface of collagen/chitosan/ P(LLA-CL) scaffolds. Such blended scaffold especially with the ratio of 20:5:75 thus has the potential for vascular graft applications. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc