Cellulose Biomaterials for Bone Tissue Engineering

Abstract

Designing artificial tissue is an essential part of modern-day medicine. This is also true for bone tissue repair. Work presented in this thesis shows the steps and development of novel cellulose-based biomaterials for bone tissue engineering (BTE). Cellulose is used as the core component in these biomaterials. This work begins with an overview of the thesis, followed by a background review of the relevant biological and physical concepts. Thereafter, original research on the biomechanical properties of apple-derived cellulose are carried out in vitro and in vivo. Afterward, relevant physical forces are applied to the same type of material, to investigate the osteogenic response. Finally, cellulose nanofibrils were chemically modified to create scaffolds through UV crosslinking. These were mechanically characterized and used as scaffolds for osteogenic cell culture. As demonstrated in this work, the use of cellulose-sourced biomaterials is certainly a promising alternative compared to the industry standard. Numerous studies have demonstrated how cellulose-based biomaterials can be employed in several branches of reconstructive medicine. However, uncertainties still exist in the application of these materials for bone tissue reconstruction such as their performance under physical stress, and in their scalability. The research presented in this thesis attempts to address these gaps in knowledge. Specifically, the results presented here show how these materials can be promising candidates for low-load BTE applications. Furthermore, it is also demonstrates that mechanosensitive pathways that regulate osteogenesis remain functional on these materials. Finally, UV-curable cellulose-derived scaffolds create a more scalable and controllable biomaterial for BTE implants, notably using light-based three-dimensional printing technologies.