Biopolymer based three‐dimensional biomimetic micro/nanofibers scaffolds with porous structures via tailored charge repulsions for skin tissue regeneration

Abstract Nowadays, the fabrication of three‐dimensional (3D) fibrous scaffolds that mimic the natural skin tissue in microstructure and composition is still a challenge. 3D nanocomposite scaffolds combining biopolymers (e.g., proteins and polysaccharides) are promising candidates for skin tissue engineering. For this purpose, nano‐microfibers and nanofibers/net 3D scaffolds based on zein, gum arabic (GA), Calendula officinalis ( C. officinalis ) extract, and poly (ε‐caprolactone) (PCL) were successfully fabricated via electrospinning technique. The morphological observation of scaffolds indicated cone‐like construction. 3D structures were formed based on repulsions between adjacent fibers and high relative humidity. The results confirmed interconnected porous structure for the sintered 3D scaffolds. Physicochemical and biological properties of the fibrous scaffolds such as mechanical behavior, water sorption capacity, weight loss, porosity, and biocompatibility were studied. The 3D scaffolds revealed significant hydrophilicity and high porosity (ca. 94% porosity) with an average pore size >9 μm. In vitro biological evaluation indicated that PCL/Zein/GA/ C. officinalis 3D scaffold with nanofibers/net morphology provided outstanding cell proliferation and attachment. The results confirmed that these nanofibers/net scaffolds with 3D structures could be potentially used in repairing skin defects.