Fabrication of polycaprolactone/zirconia nanofiber scaffolds using electrospinning technique

In the present study we have investigated the effect of Zirconia (ZrO2) nanoparticles on the fiber morphology, swelling, degradation activity and enhanced cell adhesion of the electrospun polycaprolactone (PCL) non-woven nanofiber scaffolds. The composite nanofibers scaffolds were obtained with ZrO2 weight contents varying in the range 6% to 30%. The effect of the ZrO2 nanoparticles concentration on the fiber morphology was investigated using a Field effect scanning electron microscopy (FE-SEM). We also investigated the degradation and swelling activities of the fabricated material. The results demonstrated better swelling with controlled degradation in comparison to the PCL scaffolds. Cell viability studies proved the non toxic nature of the nanocomposite scaffolds. Interestingly, the scaffolds with ZrO2 nanoparticles showed enhanced fibroblast proliferation and improved bioactivity of the scaffolds. Further, this is the first report regarding the ability of a biomaterial containing ZrO2 nanoparticles to enhance cell adhesion and proliferation.