Melt processing of chitosan-based fibers and fiber-mesh scaffolds for the engineering of connective tissues

We report the production of chitosan-based fibers and chitosan fiber-mesh structures by melt processing (solvent-free) to be used as tissue-engineering scaffolds. The melt-based approach used to produce the scaffolds does not change their main characteristics, including the surface roughness and microporosity. The porosity, pore size, interconnectivity and mechanical performance of the scaffolds are all within the range required for various tissue-engineering applications. Biological assessments are performed in direct-contact assays. Cells are able to colonize the scaffold, including the inner porous structure. The cells show high indices of viability in all of the scaffold types.Vitor M. Correlo and Ana Costa-Pinto would like to acknowledge the Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT) for their grants: SFRH/BD/22455/2005 and SFRH/24735/2005, respectively. M. Bhattacharya would like to thank FLAD (Fundacao Luso-Americana para o Desenvolvimento) for generous support of sabbatical funds towards this research