Parameterized design and fabrication of porous bone scaffolds for the repair of cranial defects. (July 2020)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Zheng, Shuxian; Li, Jia; Jing, Xiubing; Gong, Zhenhua
• Is Part Of: Medical engineering & physics. Volume 81(2020)
• Page Start: 39
• Page End: 46
• Publication Date: 2020-07
• Subjects: Cranial defect -- Bone trabecula -- Parameterized model -- Scaffold design -- Scaffold fabrication; Biomedical engineering -- Periodicals; Biomedical Engineering -- Periodicals; Physics -- Periodicals; Génie biomédical -- Périodiques; Biomedical engineering; Electronic journals; Periodicals; 610.28
• DOI: 10.1016/j.medengphy.2020.05.002
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 1350-4533

Abstract

Abstract: In bone tissue engineering, the structure of a scaffold is very important for cell growth and bone regeneration. It is better to make the scaffold resemble the native cancellous bone because natural cancellous bone can promote scaffold revascularization, which then accelerates cell proliferation. This study presents a parameterized design and fabrication method for cranial scaffold construction. A native human cranial sample was first scanned using micro computed tomography (CT), followed by 3D reconstruction, after which the internal structure of the bone trabecula was created. Based on an extracted negative bone trabecula model, the design components of "cavity", "connecting pipe" and "spatial framework" were proposed to describe the scaffold model. Then, by using the parameterized component model and an assembly and deformation algorithm, the bionic scaffold was designed. Its porous distribution, connection, porosity and area size were easily controlled. Finally, a biomaterial scaffold case was fabricated using a gelcasting process, and cell culture testing was performed in vitro to verify the scaffold's biocompatibility. The results show that the scaffold can promote cell growth and that cells accumulate in the form of a mass within three days. Highlights: A native human cranial sample was scanned to detect the bone trabecula structure. The design components of "cavity", "connecting pipe" and "spatial framework" were proposed to describe the scaffold architecture. The generated porous scaffold structure was highly similar to the native bone trabecula. A gel-casting process for β-TCP was proposed to fabricate the scaffold successfully. The scaffold and cell culture test showed that the biological properties were good, the scaffold was well fit for cell adhesion and growth.