• ASSESSING THE EFFECT OF POLYURETHANE/MULTIWALL CARBON NANOTUBES SCAFFOLD ON HUMAN ENDOMETRIAL STEM CELLS ATTACHMENT AND VIABILITY
  • Elham Hasanzadeh,1,* Jafar Ai,2 Somayeh Ebrahimi-Barough,3 Narges Mahmoodi,4 Faezeh Esmaeili Ranjbar,5 Houra Nekounam,6
    1. Department of Tissue Engineering & Regenerative Medicine, School of Advanced Technologies in Medicine, Mazandaran University of Medical Sciences,
    2. Department of Tissue Engineering, School of Advanced Technologies in Medicine, Tehran University of Medical Sciences
    3. Department of Tissue Engineering, School of Advanced Technologies in Medicine, Tehran University of Medical Sciences
    4. Sina Trauma and Surgery Research Center, Tehran University of Medical Sciences
    5. Molecular Medicine Research Center, Institute of Basic Medical Sciences Research, Rafsanjan University of Medical Sciences
    6. Department of Medical Nanotechnology, School of Advanced Technologies in Medicine, Tehran University of Medical Sciences


  • Introduction: Nanofibrous scaffolds have lately been employed as three-dimensional (3D) scaffolds for neural tissue engineering (NTE). Because of the electrical conductivity and physical similarity to the extracellular matrix, electrospun nanofibers incorporated with carbon nanotubes (CNTs) offer enormous potential for use in neural tissue regeneration. Our goal is to create 3D scaffolds employing conductive electrospun microfibrous substrates to provide an optimal microenvironment for improving cell viability and supporting cell engraftment in neural tissues.
  • Methods: Multiwall CNTs (MWCNTs) were incorporated into polyurethane, and electrospun fibers were produced. Approximately 5x104 human endometrial stem cells (hEnSCs) were cultivated on the scaffolds. Scanning electron microscope (SEM) was used to examine cell attachment, the diameter and microstructure of the nanofibers. DAPI labeling was also utilized to assess cell attachment and viability by staining the nuclei of hEnSCs.
  • Results: The SEM analysis results revealed that produced fibers were continuous, had no beads, and had a surface that was uniformly smooth. The average diameter of nanofibers was about 200nm. The mats had a porous and homogeneous fibrous architecture. Based on SEM and DAPI findings, it is possible to see the attachment and distribution of cultured cells on the scaffolds as well as the interactions between the cells and the scaffolds.
  • Conclusion: We produced and characterized polyurethane-MWCNTs scaffolds for NTE applications. Our results demonstrated that the created 3D nanofibrous scaffolds provide an adequate microenvironment for promoting cell adhesion and viability. The findings provided evidence of the potential for these types of scaffolds to be used in NTE.
  • Keywords: Polyurethane, Multiwall carbon nanotubes, Electrospinning, Nanofibrous scaffolds, Stem cells