Rachel M. Schek

Tissue Engineered Bone Using Polycaprolactone Scaffolds Made by Selective Laser Sintering

Abstract : Polycaprolactone is a bioresorbable polymer that has potential for tissue engineering of bone and cartilage. In this work, we report on the computational design and freeform fabrication of porous polycaprolactone scaffolds using selective laser sintering, a rapid prototyping technique. The microstructure and mechanical properties of the fabricated scaffolds were assessed and compared to designed porous architectures and computationally predicted properties. Compressive modulus and yield strength were within the lower range of reported properties for human trabecular bone. Finite element analysis showed that mechanical properties of scaffold designs and of fabricated scaffolds can be computationally predicted. Scaffolds were seeded with BMP-7 transduced fibroblasts and implanted subcutaneously in immunocompromised mice. Histological evaluation and micro-computed tomography (muCT) analysis confirmed that bone was generated in vivo. Finally, we have demonstrated the clinical application of this technology by producing a prototype mandibular condyle scaffold based on an actual pig condyle.