Inclusion of Magnesium- and Strontium-Enriched Bioactive Glass into Electrospun PCL Scaffolds for Tissue Regeneration

Bioactive glass (BG) is a promising material known for its osteogenic, osteoinductive, antimicrobial, and angiogenic properties. For this reason, melt-quench-derived BG powders embedded into composite electrospun poly(epsilon-caprolactone) (PCL) mats represent an interesting option for the fabrication of bioactive scaffolds. However, incorporating BG into nano-/micro-fibers remains challenging. Our research focused on integrating two BG compositions into the mat structure: 45S5 and 45S5_MS (the former being a well-known, commercially available BG composition, and the latter a magnesium- and strontium-enriched composition based on 45S5). Both BG types were added at concentrations of 10 wt.% and 20 wt.%. A careful grinding process enabled effective dispersion of BG into a PCL solution, resulting in fibers ranging from 500 nm to 2 mu m in diameter. The mats' mechanical properties were not hindered by the inclusion of BG powder within the fibrous structure. Furthermore, our results indicate that BG powders were successfully incorporated into the scaffolds, not only preserving their properties but potentially enhancing their biological performance compared to unloaded PCL electrospun scaffolds. Our findings indicate proper cell differentiation and proliferation, supporting the potential of these devices for tissue regeneration applications.