Boron nitride nanotube reinforced polylactide–polycaprolactone copolymer composite: Mechanical properties and cytocompatibility with osteoblasts and macrophages in vitro

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• 作者：Debrupa Lahiri ; Francois Rouzaud ; Tanisha Richard ; Anup K. Keshri ; Srinivasa R. Bakshi ; Lidia Kos ; Arvind Agarwal
• 关键词：Biodegradable polymer composite ; Boron nitride nanotube ; Mechanical properties ; Viability ; Cytotoxicity
• 刊名：Acta Biomaterialia
• 出版年：2010
• 出版时间：September 2010
• 年：2010
• 卷：6
• 期：9
• 页码：3524-3533
• 全文大小：1344 K

文摘

Biodegradable polylactide–polycaprolactone copolymer (PLC) has been reinforced with 0, 2 and 5 wt. % boron nitride nanotubes (BNNTs) for orthopedic scaffold application. Elastic modulus of the PLC–5 wt. % BNNT composite, evaluated through nanoindentation technique, shows a 1370 % increase. The same amount of BNNT addition to PLC enhances the tensile strength by 109 % , without any adverse effect on the ductility up to 240 % elongation. Interactions of the osteoblasts and macrophages with bare BNNTs prove them to be non-cytotoxic. PLC–BNNT composites displayed increased osteoblast cell viability as compared to the PLC matrix. The addition of BNNTs also resulted in an increase in the expression levels of the Runx2 gene, the main regulator of osteoblast differentiation. These results indicate that BNNT is a potential reinforcement for composites for orthopedic applications.