Abstract
In bone tissue engineering, porous composite materials of biopolymers and bioactive ceramics have been planned to be utilized as scaffolds for tissue regeneration with stem cells. Continuous porous structure is one of the key factors for scaffolds in order to ensure cell growth and formation of extra-cellular matrix (ECM) inside the scaffolds. In the present study, different kinds of porous composite scaffolds were developed for bone tissue engineering applications and their mechanical and biological properties were examined. For example, β-TCP particle filled collagen sponge exhibited an excellent biocompatibility with mesenchymal stem cells although its compressive properties were quite low compared to natural cancellous bone. On the contrary, sintered porous bioceramic structures with introduction of secondary polymer phase possessed better mechanical properties with proper biocompatibility. A novel porous scaffold with drug release function was also successfully developed to activate regeneration of bone. In this paper, the fabrication methods and the fundamental properties of those porous composite materials developed for bone regeneration are summarized.
