Mechanical and histological properties of an electrospun scaffold with a modified surface by plasma polymerization implanted in an in vivo model

This article presents the construction of scaffolds composed of polylactic acid(PLA)with different concentrations of hydroxyapatite(HA)by electrospinning,which were superficially modified with polypyrrole(PPy/I)by plasma polymerization.A preliminary study was conducted of the biological and mechanical behavior of the scaffolds when they were implanted in the back of rabbits for 30 days;bone cells differentiated from mesenchymal stem cells(MSCs)were used.The bone cell and scaffold structures were characterized by histological,immunohistochemical,and mechanical stress tests.Hematoxylin–eosin staining showed good tissue conformation.The immunohistochemical tests highlighted the presence of the main bone tissue proteins,such as collagen,osteocalcin,and osteopontin.The PLA/HA scaffolds were observed to exhibit cell adhesion and proliferation properties;however,the response was much better in the scaffolds that had a higher concentration of HA and that were coated with PPy/I.The results of the mechanical tests of the scaffolds indicated that the plasma treatment improved the adhesion and cell proliferation properties and contributed to the mechanical support,allowing the formation of neotissues with good viability of cell growth.