Fabrication and characterization of 3D-printed bone-like β-tricalcium phosphate/polycaprolactone scaffolds for dental tissue engineering

Abstract

β-tricalcium phosphate (β-TCP) and polycaprolactone (PCL) composites were manufactured using the lab-made 3D bioprinting system to produce 50TCP50PCL (50% β-TCP with 50% PCL) and 70TCP30PCL (70% β-TCP with 30% PCL) composite scaffolds for bone tissue engineering. The 70TCP30PCL scaffold containing the highest β-TCP content exhibited rougher morphologies and more porous than the other scaffolds (i.e., PCL and 50TCP50PCL). In vitro studies revealed that cell proliferation and alkaline phosphate activity were improved on the β-TCP-based composite scaffolds. Our results suggest that our 3-D printed β-TCP-containing PCL scaffolds would benefit new dental applications or regeneration therapies.