Abstract

Delivery of retinal progenitor cells (RPCs) for restoring injured or diseased retinal tissue using biodegradable scaffolds is a promising treatment for retinal diseases. Blend of three polymers; poly(ε-caprolactone) (PCL), poly(glycerol sebacate) (PGS), and poly(1,8-octanediol-co-citrate) (POC) was used to prepare a nanofibrous scaffold for retinal tissue engineering via electrospinning process. The PGS and POC were firstly synthesized through condensation polymerization. The combinations of PCL, PGS, and POC were then electrospun and optimized to prepare the nanofibrous scaffolds. Subsequently, hydrophilicity, degradability, and biocompatibility of the prepared scaffolds were evaluated. Morphological studies of the scaffolds showed nanofibers without any sings of beads. Tensile evaluations of the scaffolds confirmed that the prepared scaffolds could meet mechanical property requirements for retinal application. The incorporation of POC increased the hydrophilicity and degradation rate of the scaffolds. Also, in-vitro cell behavior assays revealed that human retinal pigment epithelium cells proliferated faster when the POC was added to the scaffold structure. The results suggest that the PGS/POC/PCL scaffold has the potential for retinal tissue engineering (TE) applications.

中文翻译：

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视网膜组织工程用电纺支架的开发

摘要

使用可生物降解的支架递送视网膜祖细胞（RPC）以恢复受伤或患病的视网膜组织是一种有前途的视网膜疾病治疗方法。三种聚合物的共混物；聚（ε -己内酯）（PCL），聚（癸二酸甘油酯）（PGS），和聚（1,8-二octanediol-共-柠檬酸盐（POC）用于通过电纺丝工艺制备用于视网膜组织工程的纳米纤维支架。首先通过缩聚反应合成了PGS和POC。然后将PCL，PGS和POC的组合进行电纺并进行优化，以制备纳米纤维支架。随后，评估了制备的支架的亲水性，降解性和生物相容性。支架的形态学研究表明，纳米纤维没有任何珠粒。支架的拉伸评估证实所制备的支架可以满足视网膜应用的机械性能要求。POC的加入增加了支架的亲水性和降解速率。也，体外细胞行为分析显示，当将POC添加到支架结构中时，人视网膜色素上皮细胞增殖更快。结果表明，PGS / POC / PCL支架具有视网膜组织工程（TE）应用的潜力。