Optimization of Electrospun Bilayer Vascular Grafts through Assessment of the Mechanical Properties of Monolayers

Suzan Ozdemir*, Janset Oztemur, Hande Sezgin, Ipek Yalcin-Enis

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

1 Citation (Scopus)

Abstract

Small-diameter vascular grafts must be obtained with the most appropriate materials and design selection to harmoniously display a variety of features, including adequate tensile strength, compliance, burst strength, biocompatibility, and biodegradability against challenging physiological and hemodynamic conditions. In this study, monolayer vascular grafts with randomly distributed or radially oriented fibers are produced using neat, blended, and copolymer forms of polycaprolactone (PCL) and poly(lactic acid) (PLA) via the electrospinning technique. The blending ratio is varied by increasing 10 in the range of 50-100%. Bilayer graft designs are realized by determining the layers with a random fiber distribution for the inner layer and radial fiber orientation for the outer layer. SEM analysis, wall thickness and fiber diameter measurements, tensile strength, elongation, burst strength, and compliance tests are done for both mono- and bilayer scaffolds. The findings revealed that the scaffolds made of neat PCL show more flexibility than the neat PLA samples, which possess higher tensile strength values than neat PCL scaffolds. Also, in blended samples, the tensile strength values do not show a significant improvement, whereas the elongation values are enhanced in tubular samples, depending on the blending ratio. Also, neat poly(l-lactide-co-caprolactone) (PLCL) samples have both higher elongation and strength values than neat and blended scaffolds, with some exceptions. The blended specimens comprising a combination of PCL and PLA, with blending ratios of 80/20 and 70/30, exhibited the most elevated burst pressures. Conversely, the PLCL scaffolds demonstrated superior compliance levels. These findings suggest that the blending approach and fiber orientation offer enhanced burst strength, while copolymer utilization in PLCL scaffolds without fiber alignment enhances their compliance properties. Thus, it is evident that using a copolymer instead of blending PCL and PLA and combining the PLCL layer with PCL and PLA monolayers in bilayer vascular graft design is promising in terms of mechanical and biological properties.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)960-974
Number of pages15
JournalACS Biomaterials Science and Engineering
Volume10
Issue number2
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 12 Feb 2024

Bibliographical note

Publisher Copyright:
© 2024 American Chemical Society.

Funding

This study was supported by TUBITAK Project (Grant no: 121M309) and ITU Scientific Research Projects (Grant no: 44230 and 43368).

FundersFunder number
TUBITAK Project121M309
International Technological University43368, 44230

    Keywords

    • burst strength
    • compliance mismatch
    • elongation
    • vascular grafts

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