Coating of 3D Printed Scaffolds with PVA-Based Metallic Oxides Nanocomposites for Bone Tissue Regeneration

Aiming to respond to the growing need for the development of a technology applied to bone tissue regeneration, polylactide (PLA) scaffolds were printed with a 3D fused filament printer that allows better control of the architecture and pore geometry. These scaffolds were coated with poly (vinyl alcohol) based nanocomposites and three different types of nanoparticles (zinc oxide, titanium oxide and zirconium oxide). The nanocomposites were obtained from a 7% PVA aqueous solution and a concentrario of 0,1% w/w of the nanoparticles. This nanocomposite was applied to the PLA scaffolds in order to increase the hydrophilicity of the scaffold and to generate bioactivity on its surface, since the added particles present osteoinduction capacity. After the coating, the scaffolds were characterized by NMR, TGA, DSC, SEM, compression tested, and had their biological activity measured by the evaluation of the deposition of hydroxyapatite on the surface of the scaffold. Based on the results, it can be determined that it is possible to coat the scaffold with the PVA matrix, and that these coatings can generate calcium and phosphate-based salt deposition activity on the surface. Moreover, the results indicated that the use of PVA based nanocomposites to coat scaffolds for application in bone regeneration is highly promising.