Effects of Hydroxyapatite-Containing Composite Nanofibers on Osteogenesis of Mesenchymal Stem Cells In vitro and Bone Regeneration In vivo

Among a variety of polymers, poly (3-hydroxybutyrate-co-3-hydroxyvalerate) (PHBV), a microbial polyester, with biodegradable, nonantigenic, and biocompatible properties, is attracting more and more attention in tissue engineering. Hydroxyapatite (HA), similar to the mineral component of natural bone, is known to be osteoconductive, nontoxic, and noninflammatory. In this study, aligned and random-oriented PHBV nanofibrous scaffolds loaded with HA nanoparticles were fabricated through electrospinning technique. Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) derived from rat bone marrow were used to investigate the effects of HA and orientation of fibers on cell proliferation and differentiation in vitro. Cell proliferation tested with CCK-8 assay indicated that the MSCs attached and proliferated more favorably on random-oriented PHBV nanofibrous meshes without HA. After one, two and four weeks of cell seeding, osteogenic markers including alkaline phosphate (ALP), osteocalcin (OCN), and mineralized matrix deposits were detected, respectively. The results indicated that the introduction of HA could induce MSCs to differentiate into osteoblasts. Moreover, 3D PHBV/HA scaffolds made from aligned and random-oriented nanofibers were implanted into critical-sized rabbit radius defects and exhibited significant effects on the repair of critical bone defects, implying their promising applications in bone tissue engineering.