Polycaprolactone, silk fibroin and silver nanoparticles scaffolds as a substrate for bone tissue engineering

This is the authors' abstract. We don't add key points for this paper.

Nanofibrous scaffolds composed of polycaprolactone (PCL), silk fibroin (SF) extracted from Bombyx mori cocoons, and silver nanoparticles (Ag-NPs) were fabricated using electrospinning. Their morphology, porosity, mechanical properties, chemical composition, thermal behaviour, and wettability were analysed. The addition of SF and Ag-NPs reduced fibre diameter, improved stiffness, and enhanced hydrophilicity, promoting better interactions with MG-63 osteoblast-like cells. FTIR confirmed strong intermolecular interactions among PCL, fibroin, and Ag-NPs, while the melting temperature slightly increased. In vitro assays confirmed the cytocompatibility of all tested scaffolds, and enhanced adhesion and mineralization in the presence of PCL/fibroin/Ag-NPs. These findings highlight the potential of PCL15/fibroin/Ag-NPs nanofibers as promising candidates for bone tissue engineering applications.