Institute of Fundamental Technological Research

Psiuk R., Mościcki T., Chrzanowska-Giżyńska J., Kurpaska , Radziejewska J.^♦, Denis P., Garbiec D., Chmielewski M., Mechanical and Thermal Properties of W-Ta-B Coatings Deposited by High-Power Impulse Magnetron Sputtering (HiPIMS), Materials, ISSN: 1996-1944, DOI: 10.3390/ma16020664, Vol.16, No.2, pp.1-12, 2023

Abstract:
We present the deposition and characterization of tungsten-tantalum diboride (W,Ta)B2 coatings prepared by the high-power impulse magnetron sputtering technique. We evaluated the influence of pulse duration and substrate bias on the properties of (W,Ta)B2 films. A high hardness of up to 35 GPa measured by nanoindentation was simultaneously obtained with good elastic properties. Changing the pulse duration greatly affected the B/(W+Ta) atomic ratio, which influenced the properties of the coatings. The deposited films are thermally stable at up to 1000 ◦C in vacuum and are able to withstand oxidation at 500 ◦C.

Keywords:
tungsten diboride, high power impulse magnetron sputtering (HiPIMS), hardness, thermal stability, oxidation resistance

Skorupska M., Kulczyk M., Denis P., Grzęda D., Czajka A., Ryszkowska J., Structural Hierarchy of PA6 Macromolecules after Hydrostatic Extrusion, Materials, ISSN: 1996-1944, DOI: 10.3390/ma16093435, Vol.16, No.9, pp.1-18, 2023

Abstract:
This article presents the influence of severe plastic deformation by hydrostatic extrusion (HE) on the thermal and structural properties of polyamide 6 (PA6). During the hydrostatic extrusion process, a fibrous structure oriented along the extrusion direction is formed, which was visualized during microscopic observations. The degree of crystallinity was analyzed by differential scanning calorimetry (DSC). Wide-angle X-ray scattering diffraction (WAXS) analysis was used to partially characterize the PA6 structure after the HE process. The contents of various forms of the crystalline phase in PA6 samples before and after the HE process were analyzed in fragments of spectroscopy in infrared (FTIR). The favorable properties of PA6 after the HE process were obtained after deformation under conditions generating an adiabatic temperature higher than the glass transition temperature and lower than the temperature of the onset of melting of the crystalline phase. Thermal analysis using DSC allowed us to conclude that in the PA6 after the HE process generating deformations in the range of 0.68–1.56, the proportion of the crystalline phase α increases in PA6. As the deformation increases in the HE process, the crystalline phase proportion increases by 12% compared to the initial material (before HE). The glass transition temperature of PA6 is ca. 50.6 °C, reduced for the sample after the HE process at a small deformation of 0.68 (PA6_0.68) to ca. 44.2 °C. For other samples, Tg is ca. 53.2–53.5 °C. As a result of the analysis of WAXS diffractograms of PA6 samples after various deformations in the HE process, the presence of typical peaks of phases α1 and α2 and γ was observed. The results of the FTIR spectroscopic analysis confirm these observations that as the deformation increases, the proportion of the crystalline phase α increases.

Keywords:
hydrostatic extrusion, polyamide 6, structure, thermal properties

Gloc M., Przybysz S., Dulnik J., Kołbuk-Konieczny D., Wachowski M., Kosturek R., Ślęzak T., Krawczyńska A., Ciupiński , A Comprehensive Study of a Novel Explosively Hardened Pure Titanium Alloy for Medical Applications, Materials, ISSN: 1996-1944, DOI: 10.3390/ma16227188, Vol.16, No.22, pp.7188--1-19, 2023

Abstract:
Pure titanium is gaining increasing interest due to its potential use in dental and orthopedic applications. Due to its relatively weak mechanical parameters, a limited number of components manufactured from pure titanium are available on the market. In order to improve the mechanical parameters of pure titanium, manufacturers use alloys containing cytotoxic vanadium and aluminum. This paper presents unique explosive hardening technology that can be used to strengthen pure titanium parameters. The analysis confirms that explosive induced α-ω martensitic transformation and crystallographic anisotropy occurred due to the explosive pressure. The mechanical properties related to residual stresses are very nonuniform. The corrosion properties of the explosive hardened pure titanium test do not change significantly compared to nonhardened titanium. The biocompatibility of all the analyzed samples was confirmed in several tests. The morphology of bone cells does not depend on the titanium surface phase composition and crystallographic orientation.

Keywords:
explosive hardening, pure titanium, bioimplants, titanium alloys

Golasiński K., Maj M., Urbański L., Staszczak M., Gradys A.D., Pieczyska E.A., Experimental study of thermomechanical behaviour of Gum Metal during cyclic tensile loadings: the quantitative contribution of IRT and DIC, Quantitative InfraRed Thermography Journal, ISSN: 1768-6733, DOI: 10.1080/17686733.2023.2205762, pp.1-18, 2023

Abstract:
Thermomechanical behaviour of Gum Metal (Ti–23Nb–0.7Ta–2.0Zr–1.2O, at.%) under cyclic tension was experimentally investigated using infrared thermography and digital image correlation. The thermomechanical characteristics of particular stages of the subsequent loading-unloading cycles of Gum Metal were identified, i.e. (I) the linear, elastic loading accompanied by the temperature drop, (II) the nonlinear super-elastic loading related to the temperature growth, (III) the transient stage (at which both the superelastic-like behaviour and the plastic one are present simultaneously) and the temperature starts growing fast, (IV) the plastic deformation with a significant growth of temperature, (V) the superelastic-like unloading accompanied by a fast drop in temperature, (VI) the transient unloading with a slower decrease in temperature and (VII) the elastic unloading, with a slight increase in temperature. Thermoelastic effect in Gum Metal during both loading and unloading was analysed in each tensile cycle. Finally, the evolution of strain and temperature fields just before unloading in each cycle was discussed and a comparison of the fields at selected stages of cycles 12 and 24 was presented. The results of this work enabled us to identify the non-dissipative processes of elastic and superelastic-like deformations as well as the dissipative process of plastic deformation.

Keywords:
Gum Metal,β-Ti alloy,cyclic tension,superelasticity,thermoelastic effect,infrared thermography,digital image correlation

El-Okaily Mohamed S., Mostafa Amany A., Dulnik J., Denis P., Sajkiewicz P.Ł., Mahmoud Azza A., Dawood R., Maged A., Nanofibrous Polycaprolactone Membrane with Bioactive Glass and Atorvastatin for Wound Healing: Preparation and Characterization, Pharmaceutics, ISSN: 1999-4923, DOI: 10.3390/pharmaceutics15071990, Vol.15, No.7, pp.1990-1-19, 2023

Abstract:
Skin wound healing is one of the most challenging processes for skin reconstruction, especially after severe injuries. In our study, nanofiber membranes were prepared for wound healing using an electrospinning process, where the prepared nanofibers were made of different weight ratios of polycaprolactone and bioactive glass that can induce the growth of new tissue. The membranes showed smooth and uniform nanofibers with an average diameter of 118 nm. FTIR and XRD results indicated no chemical interactions of polycaprolactone and bioactive glass and an increase in polycaprolactone crystallinity by the incorporation of bioactive glass nanoparticles. Nanofibers containing 5% w/w of bioactive glass were selected to be loaded with atorvastatin, considering their best mechanical properties compared to the other prepared nanofibers (3, 10, and 20% w/w bioactive glass). Atorvastatin can speed up the tissue healing process, and it was loaded into the selected nanofibers using a dip-coating technique with ethyl cellulose as a coating polymer. The study of the in vitro drug release found that atorvastatin-loaded nanofibers with a 10% coating polymer revealed gradual drug release compared to the non-coated nanofibers and nanofibers coated with 5% ethyl cellulose. Integration of atorvastatin and bioactive glass with polycaprolactone nanofibers showed superior wound closure results in the human skin fibroblast cell line. The results from this study highlight the ability of polycaprolactone-bioactive glass-based fibers loaded with atorvastatin to stimulate skin wound healing.

Keywords:
nanofibers, polycaprolactone, bioactive glass, coating, wound healing

Altangerel A., Moazzami Goudarzi Z., Cegielska O., Gradys A.D., Kołbuk-Konieczny D., Kalaska B., Ruszczyńska A., Sajkiewicz P.Ł., A facile one-stone-two-birds strategy for fabricating multifunctional 3D nanofibrous scaffolds, Biomaterials Science, ISSN: 2047-4849, DOI: 10.1039/D3BM00837A, Vol.11, No.16, pp.5502-5516, 2023

Abstract:
Local bacterial infections lead to delayed wound healing and in extreme cases, such as diabetic foot ulcers, to non-healing due to the impaired cellular function in such wounds. Thus, many scientists have focused on developing advanced therapeutic platforms to treat infections and promote cellular proliferation and angiogenesis. This study presents a facile approach for designing nanofibrous scaffolds in three dimensions (3D) with enhanced antibacterial activity to meet the need of treating chronic diabetic wounds. Being a cationic surfactant as well as an antimicrobial agent, octenidine (OCT) makes a 2D membrane hydrophilic, enabling it to be modified into a 3D scaffold in a “one stone, two birds” manner. Aqueous sodium borohydride (NaBH4) solution plays a dual role in the fabrication process, functioning as both a reducing agent for the in situ synthesis of silver nanoparticles (Ag NPs) anchored on the nanofiber surface and a hydrogen gas producer for expanding the 2D membranes into fully formed 3D nanofiber scaffolds, as demonstrated by morphological analyses. Various techniques were used to characterize the developed scaffold (e.g., SEM, XRD, DSC, FTIR, and surface wettability), demonstrating a multilayered porous structure and superhydrophilic properties besides showing sustained and prolonged release of OCT (61% ± 1.97 in 144 h). Thanks to the synergistic effect of OCT and Ag NPs, the antibacterial performance of the 3D scaffold was significantly higher than that of the 2D membrane. Moreover, cell viability was studied in vitro on mouse fibroblasts L929, and the noncytotoxic character of the 3D scaffold was confirmed. Overall, it is shown that the obtained multifunctional 3D scaffold is an excellent candidate for diabetic wound healing and skin repair.

Wasyłeczko M., Remiszewska E., Sikorska W., Dulnik J., Chwojnowski A., Scaffolds for Cartilage Tissue Engineering from a Blend of Polyethersulfone and Polyurethane Polymers, Molecules, ISSN: 1420-3049, DOI: 10.3390/molecules28073195, Vol.28, No.7, pp.3195-1-28, 2023

Abstract:
In recent years, one of the main goals of cartilage tissue engineering has been to find appropriate scaffolds for hyaline cartilage regeneration, which could serve as a matrix for chondrocytes or stem cell cultures. The study presents three types of scaffolds obtained from a blend of polyethersulfone (PES) and polyurethane (PUR) by a combination of wet-phase inversion and salt-leaching methods. The nonwovens made of gelatin and sodium chloride (NaCl) were used as precursors of macropores. Thus, obtained membranes were characterized by a suitable structure. The top layers were perforated, with pores over 20 µm, which allows cells to enter the membrane. The use of a nonwoven made it possible to develop a three-dimensional network of interconnected macropores that is required for cell activity and mobility. Examination of wettability (contact angle, swelling ratio) showed a hydrophilic nature of scaffolds. The mechanical test showed that the scaffolds were suitable for knee joint applications (stress above 10 MPa). Next, the scaffolds underwent a degradation study in simulated body fluid (SBF). Weight loss after four weeks and changes in structure were assessed using scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and MeMoExplorer Software, a program that estimates the size of pores. The porosity measurements after degradation confirmed an increase in pore size, as expected. Hydrolysis was confirmed by Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR) analysis, where the disappearance of ester bonds at about 1730 cm −1 wavelength is noticeable after degradation. The obtained results showed that the scaffolds meet the requirements for cartilage tissue engineering membranes and should undergo further testing on an animal model.

Keywords:
articular cartilage, cartilage tissue engineering, hydrolysis process, materials for scaffolds, partly degradable scaffolds, polyethersulfone–polyurethane scaffolds, polyurethane degradation, regenerative medicine, scaffold requirements, tissue engineering

Kołakowska A., Kołbuk-Konieczny D., Chwojnowski A., Rafalski A., Gadomska-Gajadhur A., Chitosan-Based High-Intensity Modification of the Biodegradable Substitutes for Cancellous Bone, Journal of Functional Biomaterials, ISSN: 2079-4983, DOI: 10.3390/jfb14080410, Vol.14, No.8, pp.410-1-15, 2023

Abstract:
An innovative approach to treating bone defects is using synthetic bone substitutes made of biomaterials. The proposed method to obtain polylactide scaffolds using the phase inversion technique with a freeze extraction variant enables the production of substitutes with morphology similar to cancellous bone (pore size 100–400 µm, open porosity 94%). The high absorbability of the implants will enable their use as platelet-rich plasma (PRP) carriers in future medical devices. Surface modification by dipping enabled the deposition of the hydrophilic chitosan (CS) layer, maintaining good bone tissue properties and high absorbability (850% dry weight). Introducing CS increases surface roughness and causes local changes in surface free energy, promoting bone cell adhesion. Through this research, we have developed a new and original method of low-temperature modification of PLA substitutes with chitosan. This method uses non-toxic reagents that do not cause changes in the structure of the PLA matrix. The obtained bone substitutes are characterised by exceptionally high hydrophilicity and morphology similar to spongy bone. In vitro studies were performed to analyse the effect of morphology and chitosan on cellular viability. Substitutes with properties similar to those of cancellous bone and which promote bone cell growth were obtained.

Keywords:
chitosan, polylactide, bone substitute, tissue regeneration

Urbanek-Świderska O., Moczulska-Heljak M., Wróbel M., Mioduszewski A., Kołbuk-Konieczny D., Advanced Graft Development Approaches for ACL Reconstruction or Regeneration, Biomedicines, ISSN: 2227-9059, DOI: 10.3390/biomedicines11020507, Vol.11, No.2, pp.507-1-26, 2023

Abstract:
The Anterior Cruciate Ligament (ACL) is one of the major knee ligaments, one which is greatly exposed to injuries. According to the British National Health Society, ACL tears represent around 40% of all knee injuries. The number of ACL injuries has increased rapidly over the past ten years, especially in people from 26–30 years of age. We present a brief background in currently used ACL treatment strategies with a description of surgical reconstruction techniques. According to the well-established method, the PubMed database was then analyzed to scaffold preparation methods and materials. The number of publications and clinical trials over the last almost 30 years were analyzed to determine trends in ACL graft development. Finally, we described selected ACL scaffold development publications of engineering, medical, and business interest. The systematic PubMed database analysis indicated a high interest in collagen for the purpose of ACL graft development, an increased interest in hybrid grafts, a numerical balance in the development of biodegradable and nonbiodegradable grafts, and a low number of clinical trials. The investigation of selected publications indicated that only a few suggest a real possibility of creating healthy tissue. At the same time, many of them focus on specific details and fundamental science. Grafts exhibit a wide range of mechanical properties, mostly because of polymer types and graft morphology. Moreover, most of the research ends at the in vitro stage, using non-certificated polymers, thus requiring a long time before the medical device can be placed on the market. In addition to scientific concerns, official regulations limit the immediate introduction of artificial grafts onto the market.

Keywords:
ligament,biomaterial,tissue engineering,regeneration,implant,scaffold,synthetic polymer,natural polymer

Niemczyk-Soczyńska B., Kołbuk-Konieczny D., Mikułowski G., Ciechomska I.A., Sajkiewicz P.Ł., Methylcellulose/agarose hydrogel loaded with short electrospun PLLA/laminin fibers as an injectable scaffold for tissue engineering/3D cell culture model for tumour therapies, RSC Advances, ISSN: 2046-2069, DOI: 10.1039/D3RA00851G, Vol.13, No.18, pp.11889-11902, 2023

Abstract:
This research aimed at designing and fabricating a smart thermosensitive injectable methylcellulose/agarose hydrogel system loaded with short electrospun bioactive PLLA/laminin fibers as a scaffold for tissue engineering applications or 3D cell culture models. Considering ECM-mimicking morphology and chemical composition, such a scaffold is capable of ensuring a hospitable environment for cell adhesion, proliferation, and differentiation. Its viscoelastic properties are beneficial from the practical perspective of minimally invasive materials that are introduced to the body via injection. Viscosity studies showed the shear-thinning character of MC/AGR hydrogels enabling the potential injection ability of highly viscous materials. Injectability tests showed that by tuning the injection rate, even a high amount of short fibers loaded inside of hydrogel could be efficiently injected into the tissue. Biological studies showed the non-toxic character of composite material with excellent viability, attachment, spreading, and proliferation of fibroblasts and glioma cells. These findings indicate that MC/AGR hydrogel loaded with short PLLA/laminin fibers is a promising biomaterial for both tissue engineering applications and 3D tumor culture models.

Silva M.J., Dias Y.J., Zaszczyńska A., Kołbuk-Konieczny D., Kowalczyk T., Sajkiewicz P.Ł., Yarin A., Three-phase bio-nanocomposite natural-rubber-based microfibers reinforced with cellulose nanowhiskers and 45S5 bioglass obtained by solution blow spinning, JOURNAL OF APPLIED POLYMER SCIENCE, ISSN: 0021-8995, DOI: 10.1002/app.54661, Vol.140, No.45, pp.e54661-1-18, 2023

Abstract:
Aiming at biomedical applications, the present work developed a new bio-nanocomposite fibrous mat based on natural rubber (NR) reinforced with 45S5 bioglass particles (BG) and cellulose nanowhiskers (CNW), which reveals excellent mechanical properties, good biocompatibility and bioactivity properties.
Analyses of the specimens were conducted by means of morphological observa-tions (SEM) and thermal analysis (TG/DTG), as well as mechanical tests used to verify the effect of the incorporation of BG particles and CNW on the ultimate properties of these flexible NR-CWN/BG fibrous membranes. An SEM analysis revealed that all filaments possessed a ribbon-like morphology, with increasing diameters as the BG concentration increased. This likely results from an increased viscosity of the solution used for fiber blowing. In comparison with neat NR fibrous mats, the ultimate mechanical properties of bio-nanocomposites were sig-nificantly improved due to the presence of CNW and BG particles dispersed in the
NR matrix. According to the TG/DTG analysis, the specimens' thermal stability was unaffected by the high BG content, and the thermal profiles were similar,
with isoprene chains decomposition of the NR occurring between 350 and 450C. In-vitro analysis on fibroblasts confirmed that the bio-nanocomposite fibrous mats
are noncytotoxic. It was found that fibrous mats enhanced cellular growth and hold great promise for tissue engineering applications.

Keywords:
bioactive particles,cellulose nanowhiskers,fibrous mat bio-nanocomposite,natural rubber

Manippady S., Michalska M., Krajewski M., Bochenek K., Basista M.A., Zaszczyńska A., Czeppe T., Rogal , Jain A., One-step synthesis of a sustainable carbon material for high performance supercapacitor and dye adsorption applications, Materials Science and Engineering: B, ISSN: 0921-5107, DOI: 10.1016/j.mseb.2023.116766, Vol.297, No.116766, pp.1-14, 2023

Abstract:
The sustainable transformation of bio-waste into usable, material has gained great scientific interest. In this paper, we have presented preparation of an activated carbon material from a natural mushroom (Suillus boletus) and explor its properties for supercapacitor and dye adsorption applications. The produced cell exhibited a single electrode capacitance of ∼247 F g−1 with the energy and power density of ∼35 Wh kg−1 and 1.3 kW kg−1, respectively. The cell worked well for ∼20,000 cycles with ∼30% initial declination in capacitance. Three cells connected in series glowed a 2.0 V LED for ∼1.5 min. Moreover, ultrafast adsorption of methylene blue dye onto the prepared carbon as an adsorbent was recorded with ∼100% removal efficiency in an equilibrium time of three minutes. The performed tests indicate that the mushroom-derived activated carbon has the potential to become a high-performance electrode material for supercapacitors and an adsorbent for real-time wastewater treatment applications.

Keywords:
Activated carbon, Amorphous material, Biomass, Polymer gel electrolyte, Supercapacitor, Dye adsorption

Silva M.J., Dias Y.J., Zaszczyńska A., Rojas Robles J., Abiade J., Kowalczyk T., Kołbuk-Konieczny D., Sajkiewicz P., Yarin A.L., Biocomposite-based fibrous scaffolds of natural rubber/polyhydroxybutyrate blend reinforced with 45S5 bioglass aiming at biomedical applications, Polymer Composites, ISSN: 0272-8397, DOI: 10.1002/pc.27839, pp.1-21, 2023

Abstract:
The solution blow spinning technique was used to fabricate a new biocomposite fibrous mat consisting of natural rubber (NR) and polyhydroxybutyrate (PHB) bioblend, with various loads of 45S5 bioglass (BG) particles. According to SEM analysis, NR fibers exhibited ribbon-like morphologies, whereas the addition of PHB resulted in improved fiber formation and a reduction in their diameter. In NR-PHB/BG biocomposites with varying BG loadings, typical thermal degradation events of PHB (stage i) and NR (stage ii) were observed. In comparison with pure PHB, the TG/DTG curves of NR-PHB/BG specimens revealed a lower stage i degradation peak. Such an outcome is possibly due to the fact that PHB in the NR-PHB fibers is located predominantly at the surface, that is, PHB is more susceptible to thermal degradation. The NR-PHB/BG biocomposite possessed an increased stiffness due to the addition of PHB and BG, resulting in an increased stress and a decreased strain at rupture compared to the pure NR and NR-PHB mats. DMA analysis revealed two well-defined regions, above and below the glass transition temperature (Tg), for the storage modulus (E') of the NR-PHB/BG specimens. The values of E' were in both regions for NR-PHB/BG specimens increased at higher BG content. The measured tanδ = E″/E' was used to determine the Tg value for all specimens, with Tg found to be in the −49 to −46°C range. Finally, NR-PHB/BG biocomposite fibrous were proven noncytotoxic by in-vitro testing on fibroblasts. These biocomposites enhanced cell growth, holding great promise for tissue engineering applications.

Keywords:
45S5 bioglass, biocomposite fibrous mat, biomedical applications, natural rubber, polyhydroxybutyrate, solution blow spinning

Zakrzewska A., Zargarian S.S., Rinoldi C., Gradys A.D., Jarząbek D.M., Zanoni M., Gualandi C., Lanzi M., Pierini F., Electrospun Poly(vinyl alcohol)-Based Conductive Semi-interpenetrating Polymer Network Fibrous Hydrogel: A Toolbox for Optimal Cross-Linking, ACS Materials Au, ISSN: 2694-2461, DOI: 10.1021/acsmaterialsau.3c00025, Vol.3, No.5, pp.464-482, 2023

Abstract:
Cross-linking of poly(vinyl alcohol) (PVA) creates a three-dimensional network by bonding adjacent polymer chains. The cross-linked structure, upon immersion in water, turns into a hydrogel, which exhibits unique absorption properties due to the presence of hydrophilic groups within the PVA polymer chains and, simultaneously, ceases to be soluble in water. The properties of PVA can be adjusted by chemical modification or blending with other substances, such as polymers, e.g., conductive poly[3-(potassium-5-butanoate)thiophene-2,5-diyl] (P3KBT). In this work, PVA-based conductive semi-interpenetrating polymer networks (semi-IPNs) are successfully fabricated. The systems are obtained as a result of electrospinning of PVA/P3KBT precursor solutions with different polymer concentrations and then cross-linking using “green”, environmentally safe methods. One approach consists of thermal treatment (H), while the second approach combines stabilization with ethanol and heating (E). The comprehensive characterization allows to evaluate the correlation between the cross-linking methods and properties of nanofibrous hydrogels. While both methods are successful, the cross-linking density is higher in the thermally cross-linked samples, resulting in lower conductivity and swelling ratio compared to the E-treated samples. Moreover, the H-cross-linked systems have better mechanical properties─lower stiffness and greater tensile strength. All the tested systems are biocompatible, and interestingly, due to the presence of P3KBT, they show photoresponsivity to solar radiation generated by the simulator. The results indicate that both methods of PVA cross-linking are highly effective and can be applied to a specific system depending on the target, e.g., biomedical or electronic applications.

Keywords:
poly(vinyl alcohol),poly[3-(potassium-5-butanoate)thiophene-2.5-diyl],electrospun nanofibers,cross-linking,fibrous hydrogel,semi-IPN

Miętus M., Kolankowski K., Gołofit T., Denis P., Bandzerewicz A., Spychalski M., Mąkosa-Szczygieł M., Pilarek M., Wierzchowski K., Gadomska-Gajadhur A., From Poly(glycerol itaconate) Gels to Novel Nonwoven Materials for Biomedical Applications, Gels, ISSN: 2310-2861, DOI: 10.3390/gels9100788, Vol.9, No.788, pp.1-19, 2023

Abstract:
Electrospinning is a process that has attracted significant interest in recent years. It provides the opportunity to produce nanofibers that mimic the extracellular matrix. As a result, it is possible to use the nonwovens as scaffolds characterized by high cellular adhesion. This work focused on the synthesis of poly(glycerol itaconate) (PGItc) and preparation of nonwovens based on PGItc gels and polylactide. PGItc gels were synthesized by a reaction between itaconic anhydride and glycerol. The use of a mixture of PGItc and PLA allowed us to obtain a material with different properties than with stand-alone polymers. In this study, we present the influence of the chosen ratios of polymers and the OH/COOH ratio in the synthesized PGItc on the properties of the obtained materials. The addition of PGItc results in hydrophilization of the nonwovens’ surface without disrupting the high porosity of the fibrous structure. Spectral and thermal analyzes are presented, along with SEM imagining. The preliminary cytotoxicity research showed that nonwovens were non-cytotoxic materials. It also helped to pre-determine the potential application of PGItc + PLA nonwovens as subcutaneous tissue fillers or drug delivery systems.

Keywords:
poly(glycerol itaconate), polylactide, electrospinning, tissue engineering, hydrogels