A novel porous bioceramics scaffold by accumulating hydroxyapatite spherules for large bone tissue engineering in vivo. I. Preparation and characterization of scaffold.

A novel scaffold with large dimension of 3-4 cm in length and 1-1.5 cm in diameter was designed and fabricated for engineering large bone tissue in vivo. The scaffold was constructed by filling hydroxyapatite (HA) spherules into a porous HA tube. The HA spherules were prepared by chitin sol emulsification in oil and gelation in situ, and their sizes can be controlled by parameters such as stirring rate and oil temperature. Accumulation of the HA spherules formed the interconnected pores in the scaffold, and the porosity and microstructure of the scaffold can be controlled by varying the size and miroporous structure of the HA spherules. Porous HA tube coated with a thin layer of poly(L-lactic acid) (PLA) held the HA spherules together and provided the initial strength of scaffolds. HA spherules can be easily compounded with biological substance, such as comminuted bone granules, before being filled into the HA tubes. A pilot study is underway to use the hybrid scaffolds at different sites such as muscle, peritoneum, and bone side.