A collagen-poly(lactic acid-co-ɛ-caprolactone) hybrid scaffold for bladder tissue regeneration.

Scaffold materials should favor cell attachment and proliferation, and provide designable 3D structures with appropriate mechanical strength. Collagen matrices have proven to be beneficial scaffolds for tissue regeneration. However, apart from small intestinal submucosa, they offer a limited mechanical strength even if crosslinking can enhance their mechanical properties.

A poly(lactic acid-co-caprolactone)-collagen hybrid for tissue engineering applications.

A biodegradable hybrid scaffold consisting of a synthetic polymer, poly(lactic acid-co-caprolactone) (PLACL), and a naturally derived polymer, collagen, was constructed by plastic compressing hyperhydrated collagen gels onto a flat warp-knitted PLACL mesh. The collagen compaction process was characterized, and it was found that the duration, rather than the applied load under the test conditions in the plastic compression, was the determining factor of the collagen and cell density in the cell-carrying component. Cells were spatially distributed in three different setups and statically cultured for a period of 7 days.