Electrospinning Equipment: A temporally and spatially controllable injectable heterogeneous silk fibroin gel scaffold for accelerated guided vertebral repair

Research progress of heterogeneous silk fibroin gel scaffolds

The heterogeneous silk fibroin gel scaffolds developed by the team of Professor Tao Hu of Shanghai Institute of Microsystem and Information Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences and the team of Professor Lei Wei of Orthopedics Department, Xijing Hospital, Fourth Military Medical University, can regulate and balance HIF-1α expression and promote angiogenesis and osteogenesis through local spatiotemporal drug release. The scaffold has the following characteristics and advantages:

Drug release function: realize the controlled release of HIF-1α, enhance the expression of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) to promote angiogenesis, and avoid overexpression of VEGF and excessive blood vessel growth.

Structure and performance: It has a porous structure and certain mechanical properties to promote in situ bone regeneration.

Biocompatibility and degradability: It shows good biocompatibility and biodegradability in vivo.

Application and connection of electrospinning equipment

Electrospinning equipment plays an important role in the preparation of high-performance biomaterials. The nanofibers prepared by it have high specific surface area, high porosity and good biocompatibility, and are widely used in tissue engineering, drug delivery and other fields. Combining electrospinning technology with the study of heterogeneous silk fibroin gel scaffolds can further improve the performance and application effects of the material:

Preparing nanofiber structures: Electrospinning can produce uniform continuous fibers with diameters ranging from nanometers to micrometers, which can be used to build reinforced structures of scaffolds and improve their mechanical properties and stability.

Regulating fiber morphology and arrangement: By adjusting the parameters in the electrospinning process (such as spinning solution concentration, viscosity, electric field strength, etc.), the diameter and morphology of the fibers can be precisely controlled to optimize the performance of the material. For example, in the hydrogel-assisted electrospinning process, 3D hydrogel structures are used as grounded current collectors to manufacture 3D nanofiber macrostructures with 3D complex but tailored configurations.

Loading bioactive substances: Electrospinning equipment can prepare nanofiber scaffolds loaded with bioactive molecules, and by controlling the release rate, the continuous action of bioactive substances in the bone repair site can be achieved. For example, loading growth factors, drugs, etc. that promote bone regeneration and angiogenesis into nanofibers can further improve the therapeutic effect of heterogeneous silk fibroin gel scaffolds.

Combination with other technologies: Electrospinning technology can also be combined with 3D printing technology to achieve precise construction of complex three-dimensional structures. For example, by installing an electrospinning print head and an extrusion print head at the same time, the printing process of active biological structures can be completed in a single step. This combination can provide more design freedom and higher precision for the preparation of heterogeneous silk fibroin gel scaffolds, and meet the personalized customization of different bone repair needs.

Summary and Outlook

As a new type of bone repair material, heterogeneous silk fibroin gel scaffolds show great application potential through local spatiotemporal drug release and good biocompatibility. Electrospinning equipment plays an important role in the preparation of this scaffold, and can prepare nanofibers with excellent structure and performance, further improving the performance and application effect of the material. Future research can further explore the combination of electrospinning technology with other emerging technologies, such as 3D printing, nanotechnology, etc., to achieve more complex and finer structural design and functional regulation. In addition, the electrospinning process parameters and material selection can be optimized to improve the biocompatibility, mechanical properties and drug loading capacity of nanofibers, and promote the clinical transformation and application of heterogeneous silk fibroin gel scaffolds in the field of bone repair.

Electrospinning Nanofibers Article Source:

https://doi.org/10.1002/adhm.202202210