Polymer-ceramic composites have high therapeutic potential as biocompatible scaffolds for bone tissue regeneration due to their osteoconductivity, bioresorbability, and well-suited mechanical properties. Thiol-acrylate polymer composites show promise as a temporary bone substitute for critical-size defects. Chemical and physical characterizations were performed on the polymeric foam scaffold poly(ethylene glycol) diacrylate-co-trimethylolpropane tris(3-mercaptopropionate). In vitro and in vivo studies were performed to determine the biocompatibility of the polymer. Tissue engineering has become a major research focus as the need for more effective methods of tissue regeneration has increased over the past decade. Using polymers for bone tissue engineering offers advantages over conventional transplantation procedures, which suffer from supply, cost, and/or health drawbacks. Human adipose-derived adult stem cells (hASCs) complexed with a polymer composite could both maintain the structural integrity of a temporary bone substitute and lead to bone regeneration. Thiol-acrylate polymers have suitable mechanical properties and an adequately-sized porous structure with necessary interconnectivity. Ceramics such as hydroxyapatite or β-tricalcium phosphate increase the mechanical and osteoinductive properties of biomaterials and can be easily implemented into polymers. A novel class of in situ-polymerizing thiol-acrylate copolymers synthesized via an amine-catalyzed Michael addition was studied for its potential to be used in bone defect repair. These thiol-acrylate polymers showed useful customizability by simply changing catalyst concentration. The polymer composites had appropriate physical properties to mimic bone and be used as a temporary bone substitutes. In vitro results indicated that although the hASCs initially attach to the polymer, they do not stay attached and therefore die. The in vivo study serves as a proof-of-concept that gas foaming of thiol-acrylate polymers in vivo may be used to fill defects of irregular shapes and sizes with little adverse health effects.

Biomedical applications of thiol-acrylate polymerization

253rd National Meeting (2017)

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