Electrospinning technology is widely embraced by the academic community as the go to technology to create scaffolds to facilitate soft tissue regeneration. Year after year, the number of publications describing the use of electrospun scaffolds for orthopaedic use is increasing1. Numerous studies show the use of electrospun materials for the repair of ligaments, tendons and the bone-tendon interface2,3, aimed at substituting allo/xenografts. Next to soft tissue repair, in vivo studies show that the use of electrospun materials has potential to treat non-union fractures4,5 as well as facilitate local antibiotic release6. Electrospun materials have also been tested to treat unmet needs such as spinal hernia repair7 and meniscal tears8 with promising results.
Electrospinning technology allows superior design features impossible using biological grafts. Control over fibre diameter tailors the degree of tissue ingrowth, architecture control such as aligned fibres allow cell wicking and specific mechanical properties. The wide variety of polymers that can be electrospun, both synthetic and biological, further widens the mechanical properties and degradation time. Another unique feature is the ability to incorporate active pharmaceutical ingredients such as BMP-2 onto the fibres, providing local drug delivery.
The versatility of electrospinning as a technology platform allows the design of biomaterials with superior features compared to the biological graft materials they could replace. The fibre diameter can be tailored to the desired degree of cell and tissue ingrowth and fibre orientation designed to guide cell growth and wick cells to healing sites. Biomaterial mechanical properties and degradation times can be controlled by choice of polymer as well as architecture. In addition, molecules, peptides, or nanoparticles can be incorporated into fibres to functionalise them. For example, BMP-2 can be incorporated and released slowly at the site of interest. Thanks to advances in electrospinning equipment, electrospun materials can now be produced at a scale attractive to market.
Some of these innovations have been translated into regulator-approved products and are gaining clinical adoption. The Electrospinning Company is at the forefront of one of these products used in sports medicine.
References
- PubMed search: “electrospinning AND orthopaedic”.
- Biomimetic strategies for tendon/ligament-to-bone interface regeneration. Bioact Mater. 2021 Aug; 6(8): 2491–2510.
- Nanofiber Scaffolds by Electrospinning for Rotator Cuff Tissue Engineering. Chonnam Med J. 2021 Jan; 57(1): 13–26.
- Chitosan and gelatin-based electrospun fibers for bone tissue engineering. Int J Biol Macromol. 2019 Jul 15; 133:354-364.
- Electrospun Poly(butylene-adipate-co-terephthalate)/Nano-hyDroxyapatite/Graphene Nanoribbon Scaffolds Improved the In Vivo Osteogenesis of the Neoformed Bone. 2021 J Funct Biomater. Mar; 12(1): 11.
- Comparative efficacy of resorbable fiber wraps loaded with gentamicin sulfate or gallium maltolate in the treatment of osteomyelitis. 2021 J Biomed Mater Res A. May 5.
- Tissue Engineering of the Intervertebral Disc’s Annulus Fibrosus: A Scaffold-Based Review Study. Tissue Eng Regen Med. 2017 Apr; 14(2): 81–91.
- Core–Shell Nanofibrous Scaffolds for Repair of Meniscus Tears. Tissue Eng Part A. December 2019; 25(23-24): 1577–1590.
- Electrospun Fibers Immobilized with BMP-2 Mediated by Polydopamine Combined with Autogenous Tendon to Repair Developmental Dysplasia of the Hip in a Porcine Model. Int J Nanomedicine. 2020; 15: 6563–6577.
Orthopaedics Case Study
We manufacture electrospun components for a Fortune 500 company’s orthopaedic medical devices. Read this case study about the journey we have taken with them.
We respect our clients’ desire for confidentiality, hence this case study is anonymous, as requested by the client. If you would like to discuss your project or if you need any advice on how to use electrospinning for your application, please contact us at info@electrospinning.co.uk.