Biodegradable electrospun PLLA/chitosan membrane as guided tissue regeneration membrane for treating periodontitis

This paper explores the application potential of a biodegradable PLLA/chitosan electrospun composite membrane for guided periodontal tissue regeneration which in addition serves as a fibroblast barrier. Electrospinning was applied to fabricate the PLLA membrane and aminolysis method was applied to graft chitosan on its surface. The morphology of the PLLA/chitosan membrane was observed by SEM. The surface chemical composition was analyzed by XPS. The appearance of N 1s peak in XPS demonstrated the successful grafting of chitosan on the PLLA electrospin membrane. After the modification, the water contact angle decreased from 136.9 ± 2.18° to 117.0 ± 2.10°, representing an improved hydrophilicity of the membrane. The bioactivity of the membrane was analyzed by XPS after soaking in SBF. The deposits had a Ca/P ratio of 1.6, indicating the hydroxyapatite formation on PLLA/chitosan membrane. The degradation rate was determined by measuring mass loss after immersion in PBS at different time periods. Compared to pure PLLA electrospun membrane which was almost non-degradable, the degradation rate of PLLA/chitosan composite membrane was up to 20 % in 6 weeks while maintaining its basic architecture to keep supporting the regenerated tissue. Live–dead cell staining of MC3T3 E1 cells cultured on the surface of the membrane showed a good biocompatibility of the PLLA/chitosan membrane. Furthermore, fibroblast cell line NIH 3T3 was cultured on surface of the membrane for the evaluation of cell penetration. The result demonstrated that the membrane worked as a fibroblast barrier to minimize the unfavorable effect of fibroblasts on periodontal tissue regeneration. Therefore, this electrospun PLLA/chitosan composite membrane has more potential for clinical application compared to old generation regeneration membrane with both suitable degradation rate and non-fibroblast penetration property.