Porous BMP-2 immobilized PLGA/Glycol chitosan scaffold with enhanced hydrophilicity, mineralization and osteogenesis

In this study, we investigated the effectiveness of poly (lactic-co-glycolic acid) (PLGA) porous scaffold in enhancing bone regeneration through surface modification with glycol chitosan (GCH) and bone morphogenetic protein-2(BMP-2). Immobilization of GCH on PLGA (PLGA-GCH) and simple immobilization of osteogenic BMP-2 on PLGA-GCH (PLGA-GCH-BMP-2) via EDC/NHS as crosslinker was highly efficient. The surface morphologies of the scaffolds were observed using a scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The immobilization of GCH and BMP-2 on PLGA was characterized using Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), which confirmed the conjugation of GCH and BMP-2 peptides on PLGA. Human adipose derived stem cells (hADSCs) were cultured on the scaffolds to determine the effect of surface modification on mineralization and cell differentiation. PLGA-GCH-BMP-2 scaffold showed enhanced in-vitro calcium mineralization and osteogenic differentiation of hADSCs using osteogenic medium. The developed scaffold might be effective filler materials for enhancing osteogenesis in 3D printed vertebra spacers targeting the aged patients.