Mechanical property and cell compatibility of silk/PLGA hybrid scaffold; In vitro study

The design of new bioactive scaffolds offering physiologic environment for tissue formation is an important frontier in biomaterials research. In this study, we performed compressive strength, water-uptake ability, and SEM analysis for physical property assessment of 3-D silk/PLGA scaffold, and investigated the adhesion, proliferation, phenotype maintenance, and inflammatory responses of RAW 264.7 and NIH/3T3 for cell compatibility. Scaffolds were prepared by the solvent casting/salt leaching method and their compressive strength and water-uptake ability were excellent at 20 wt% silk content. Result of cell compatibility assay showed that inflammatory responses distinctly decreased, and initial adhesion and proliferation were maximized at 20 wt% silk content. In conclusion, we suggest that silk/PLGA scaffolds may be useful to tissue engineering applications.