Matrices for tissue engineering-scaffold structure for a bioartificial liver support system

This study proposes a new composite scaffold system. A woven polyethylenterephtalate (PET) fabric was coated on one side with a biodegradable PLGA film, in order to obtain a geometrically polarized scaffold structure for an bioartificial liver support system. The composite structure ensures the stability of the membrane during degradation of the membrane polymer. The mesh size of the composite does not significantly influence the degradation behavior. Hepatocyte culturing studies reveal that the formation of aggregates depends on the mesh size and on the pretreatment: The largest aggregates could be observed after 48 h when PVLA coating, large mesh size and EGF were combined. Thus, the combination of a geometrically structured, partially degradable scaffold with receptor-mediated cell attachment sites offers promising possibilities in liver tissue engineering. (C) 2000 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.