Fabrication and characterization of bio‐inspired polymer blends and hybrid composites based on collagen‐type II, polyethylene glycol‐dimethacrylate and hydroxyapatite

The morphology, mechanical properties and bioactivity of collagen/polyethylene glycol dimethacrylate (PGD) blends as well as collagen/PGD/hydroxyapatite hybrid composites are evaluated for tissue regeneration applications. PGD concentrations are varied from 8 to 20 wt% in collagen and photocrosslinked with UV light to develop well shaped sustainable samples. With increasing PGD concentration, the network density of the collagen is increased to improve the sample fidelity. The compressive modulus is increased from 4 to 14.5 kPa along with the improvement in cell viability and proliferation with increasing PGD concentration in collagen. For hybrid composites, the hydroxyapatite (HA) concentration is varied from 1 to 10 wt% in collagen/PGD‐16 wt% which is improved further not only the network density but also the sample fidelity. The modulus of the hybrid composites is further enhanced up to 20 kPa. Cell proliferation and viability is significantly increased up to 100% and cells reached to 99% confluency particularly in collagen/PGD/HA (10wt %) system. Moreover, the morphology of cells changed from spherical to flattened spread morphology with increasing concentrations of HA demonstrating clearly the migration of the cells for the formation of interconnected cellular network. Overall, the hybrid composites show superior mechanical properties along with enhanced cytocompatibility for tissue engineering applications. POLYM. COMPOS., 39:E550–E560, 2018. © 2017 Society of Plastics Engineers