Study On Preparation And Properties Of Electrospun PLGA-chitosan/PVA Composite Membranes

Electrospinning is a novel processing method that can produce ultrafine fibers with diameters ranging from 5 nm to 1μm. With high specific surface area and high porosity, scaffolds composed of electrospun fibers feature a structural similarity to the natural extracellular matrix (ECMs). Therefore, they can mimick the nanoscale dimension of ECMs to provide cells with environmental signals and to maintain structural and mechanical stability and promote cell adhesion and proliferation.In this study, fibrous membranes of poly(L-lactic-co-glycolic acid) (PLGA), chitosan/polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) and composite PLGA-chitosan/PVA were produced by electrospinning and their morphology were characterized by scanning electron microscope. The content of each component in the composite membrane was measured by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and also by weighing after dissolving the PLGA component in chloroform. The results indicated that the composite membrane contained 9.47±2.44% chitosan/PVA component. Chitosan and PVA in the membranes were crosslinked by treatment with glutaraldehyde vapor at 37°C. The mechanical properties of electrospun membranes were evaluated by tensile test, and the results indicated that the crosslinked PLGA-chitosan/PVA composite membranes showed good tensile properties. The composite membranes showed relatively large absorption in phosphate buffer solution (PBS) and small shrinkage due to introduction of chitosan/PVA component. After 10-week in vitro degradation, both electrospun PLGA and crosslinked composite membranes exhibited no significant change in pH value and morphology of ultrafine fibers and the composite membranes could still maintain their tensile strength and Young's modulus.Studies on cell morphology showed that it was much easier for rabbit skin fibroblasts to spread and appear spindle-like shape on crosslinked composite membranes and MTT assay indicated that cell viability of the composite membranes was slightly higher. The introduction of chitosan/PVA component improved the hydrophilicity and charge balance, and thus promoted the adhesion of human embryo skin fibroblasts on crosslinked composite membranes. The crosslinked fibrous composite membranes could mimic the structure of ECMs and positively promote cell-cell and cell-matrix interactions.