I understand what water swelling behavior means, but how is that related with a materials properties to assist in bone regeneration ?
Dear Margarita,
I have the following opinion (which definitely is arguable!): Tissue engineering of bone grafts is only needed for volumetric sized defects - small defects in vivo will heal without artificial treatment. Volumetric sized grafts need to support nutrient supply and vascularization not just at the interface of bone graft and defect, but especially within the center of the tissue engineered construct. For that purpose, an interconnected pore network should be designed within the biomaterial. In case of hydrogels, pores might collapse due to swelling of the polymer, and therefore swelling behaviour is crucial for the success of bone healing. It definitely might be from interest not just to measure the mass swelling, but also the volume of the pores over time.
However, as I said, that is just an opinion and open for discussion. One also should consider that swelling is an indicator for scaffold degradation which is also needed for regenerative therapies.
Dear Margarita,
I have the following opinion (which definitely is arguable!): Tissue engineering of bone grafts is only needed for volumetric sized defects - small defects in vivo will heal without artificial treatment. Volumetric sized grafts need to support nutrient supply and vascularization not just at the interface of bone graft and defect, but especially within the center of the tissue engineered construct. For that purpose, an interconnected pore network should be designed within the biomaterial. In case of hydrogels, pores might collapse due to swelling of the polymer, and therefore swelling behaviour is crucial for the success of bone healing. It definitely might be from interest not just to measure the mass swelling, but also the volume of the pores over time.
However, as I said, that is just an opinion and open for discussion. One also should consider that swelling is an indicator for scaffold degradation which is also needed for regenerative therapies.
Hi Margarita,
Indeed, Time-dependent higher percentage of swelling creates more porosity in the structure which leads more exchange of nutrient and waste element of encapsulated cells during incubation period.
I hope this help you
Dear Margarita,
I agreed with Ahlfeld & Abbas opinions and explanations. The relevant idea for implantable bone bioscaffold need to have porous structure to support the tissue integration and cell migration from normal sites. The interconnected pores would assist in the nutrient transportation in and out together with gas interchange. This porous structure could expedite the wound healing process and the longevity post-implant bone bioscaffold. Wish you luck in your future output. Thanks.
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