• Membrane Journal
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• v.24 no.2
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• pp.113-122
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• 2014

Porous poly(L-lactic acid)(PLLA) scaffold membranes were prepared via. phase separation process. Chloroform, dichloromethane and 1,4-dioxane were used as solvent and, ethyl alcohol was used as non-solvent. Morphologies, mechanical properties and mass transfer characteristics of the scaffold membranes were investigated through SEM, stress-strain test and glucose diffusion test. The scaffold membranes obtained from the casting solutions with chloroform and with dichloromethane showed similar morphologies. They showed sponge-like porous structure with the pore size in the range of $3-10{\mu}m$ and, their porosities were in 50-80% range. Using 1,4-dioxane as solvent, nano-fibrous scaffold membranes with porosities over 80% were fabricated. When the polymer content in the solution with 1,4-dioxane was lowered to 4%, highly porous, macroporous and nano-fibrous scaffold membranes were obtained. The size of the macropore was tens of the microns and the porosity was around 90%. These results indicate that the solvent has significant effect on the scaffold membrane structure and, that scaffold membranes with various structures can be fabricated through phase separation method by choosing solvent and by controlling polymer concentration in the casting solution.

• Proceedings of the KSME Conference
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• 2008.11a
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• pp.1700-1703
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• 2008

The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of various mechanical stimuli for MC3T3-E1 cells. Among the several mechanical stimulations, we focused on compressive stain and ultrasound. In this study, we developed a bioreactor capable of applying controlled stimuli to scaffolds. PLLA/PCL scaffold was fabricated by using salt-leaching method. We performed dynamic cell culture using preosteoblasts MC3T3-E1 cells with 1MHz, 30mW/cm2 ultrasound and 10% of compressive strain. Result of CCK-8 analysis at 1, 4, 7, 10 days showed that mechanical stimuli had no significant effect for cell proliferation. However, those stimuli influenced ALP(Alkaline phopatase) activity, which is one of differentiation marker.

• Macromolecular Research
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• v.16 no.8
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• pp.704-710
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• 2008

Injectable hydrogels are quite promising materials due to their potential to minimize invasive implantation and this provides versatile fitness irrespective of the damaged regions and facilitates the incorporation of bioactive agents or cells. In situ gel formation through stereocomplex formation is a promising candidate for injectable hydrogels. In this paper, a new series of enantiomeric, four-arm, PEG-PLA block copolymers and their stereocomplexed hydrogels were prepared by bulk ring-opening polymerization of D-lactide and L-lactide, respectively, with stannous octoate as a catalyst. The prepared polymers were characterized by $^1H$ nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy, Fourier-transform infrared (FT IR) spectroscopy, gel permeation chromatography (GPC) and thermal gravitational analysis (TGA), confirming the tailored structure and chain lengths. The swelling and degradation behavior of the hydrogels formed from a selected copolymer series were observed in different concentrations. The degradation rate decreased with increasing polymer content in the solution. The rheological behavior indicated that the prepared hydrogel underwent in situ gelation and had favorable mechanical strength. In addition, its feasibility as an injectable scaffold was evaluated using a media dependence test for cell culture. A Tris solution was more favorable for in situ gel formation than PBS and DMEM solutions were. These results demonstrated the in situ formation of hydrogel through the construction of a stereocomplex with enantiomeric, 4-arm, PEG-PLA copolymers. Overall, enantiomeric, 4-arm, PEG-PLA copolymers are a new species of stereocomplexed hydrogels that are suitable for further research into injectable hydrogels.