Environmental Scanning Electron Microscopy of Dermal Fibroblasts on Various Types of Polymer Scaffolds

With the progress in tissue engineering, the need for deep understanding of the interaction between individual cells and cellular systems with biocompatible polymer scaffolds has become obvious. This requires data on the adhesion and proliferation of cells on the scaffolds. Environmental scanning electron microscopy makes it possible to increase the pressure and humidity in a microscope chamber, thereby bringing the experimental conditions close to environmental. Scanning electron microscopy study of dermal fibroblasts is illustrated by the example of several scaffolds of different morphologies, including sponges, films, and nonwoven materials based on poly(L-)lactide, polycaprolactone, and a poly(L-)lactide-co-polycaprolactone. The data obtained show that the proposed method is promising for studying cell structures on polymer scaffolds.