Three-layered porous device in PCL/PEG blend for interface tissue engineering

Abstract

Tissue interfaces, such as cartilage-to-bone, exhibit anisotropic structural properties, which gradually vary from one tissue to another. Consequently a regenerative scaffold designed for interface tissues should exhibit a gradient in composition, structure and mechanical features, mimicking those of the native zones. In particular, the architecture of pores plays a central role. Indeed, a biomedical implant should be designed with porosityand pore size gradients simulating the structure of the two interface tissues. One of the most common techniques to prepare porous scaffolds is the particulate leaching method, which involves the selective leaching of a mineral or organic compound as porogen agents. The main advantage of particulate leaching methods is the effective control of porosity and pore size by variation of the amount and size of leachable particles.