Synthesis of polyester urethane urea and fabrication of elastomeric nanofibrous scaffolds for myocardial regeneration

• PEUU was synthesized to fabricate elastomeric scaffolds for myocardial regeneration.
• FTIR, DSC and XRD analysis showed that polymer synthesis was well.
• PEUU/gelatin nanofibrous scaffolds could be reshaped with cyclic deformations of the heart.
• Gelatin in structure of PEUU nanofibers improved proliferation of cardiomyocytes.
• Aligned PEUU/gelatin 70:30 nanofibrous scaffold support the alignment of cardiomyocytes.

Fabrication of bioactive scaffolds is one of the most promising strategies to reconstruct the infarcted myocardium. In this study, we synthesized polyester urethane urea (PEUU), further blended it with gelatin and fabricated PEUU/G nanofibrous scaffolds. Attenuated total reflectance Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (ATR-FTIR), differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) and X-ray diffraction were used for the characterization of the synthesized PEUU and properties of nanofibrous scaffolds were evaluated using scanning electron microscopy (SEM), ATR-FTIR, contact angle measurement, biodegradation test, tensile strength analysis and dynamic mechanical analysis (DMA). In vitro biocompatibility studies were performed using cardiomyocytes. DMA analysis showed that the scaffolds could be reshaped with cyclic deformations and might remain stable in the frequencies of the physiological activity of the heart. On the whole, our study suggests that aligned PEUU/G 70:30 nanofibrous scaffolds meet the required specifications for cardiac tissue engineering and could be used as a promising construct for myocardial regeneration.

Figure optionsDownload as PowerPoint slide