Negative Voltage Electrospinning of Fibrous Nanocomposite Scaffolds for Bone Tissue Engineering

For bone tissue engineering, nanofibrous polymer scaffolds and carbonated hydroxyapatite (CHA) nanoparticle-incorporated composite scaffolds can be produced using positive voltage electrospinning. But there is virtually no report on negative voltage electrospinning (NVES) of nanocomposite scaffolds, which could render scaffolds bearing negative charges after electrospinning. This study demonstrates, for the first time, the successful fabrication of fibrous nanocomposite scaffolds using NVES. Nanocomposite scaffolds used poly (hydroxybutyrate-co-hydroxyvalerate) (PHBV) as the polymer matrix and CHA nanospheres were dispersed in PHBV solutions for electrospinning via NVES. PHBV scaffolds were also made via NVES for comparison. Both types of scaffolds exhibited charge bearing ability and similar charge decay profiles. NVES may provide new tissue engineering scaffolds with unique electrical properties that will enhance their biological performance.