Comparison of Biocompatibility and Morphology of PC12 Cell Line on a Polycaprolactane/Silymarin Scaffold and a Polycaprolactane/Tragacanth Scaffold

 The goal of tissue engineering is to create biological solutions that restore, maintain, and improve the function of damaged tissue. Scaffolds are structures based on extracellular matrix materials that have undergone various treatments.

 This study aimed to prepare polycaprolactone/silymarin and polycaprolactane/tragacanth scaffolds and compare the morphology and viability of PC12 cell lines.

 A 7% polycaprolactane solution (dissolved in acetic acid) was mixed with a 0.9% silymarin solution to prepare the polycaprolactane scaffold and silymarin loading, and a 7% polycaprolactane solution was mixed to prepare the polycaprolactane and tragacanth scaffold. Tragacanth solution was mixed at a concentration of 0.7% by weight, and then two scaffolds were prepared by electrospinning. The morphology of the scaffolds was studied by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and the chemical structure of the scaffolds was studied by ATR-FTIR spectroscopy. The biocompatibility of the scaffolds and cell survival of PC12 cells was investigated by MTT assay.

 The morphology of the scaffolds and their chemical structure showed good porosity and successful loading of silymarin onto PCL and a suitable combination of tragacanth with PCL. The biocompatibility of the scaffolds was evaluated at 24, 48, and 72 hours after PC12 cell culture. Cell survival was found to increase on polycaprolactane/silymarin scaffolds compared to polycaprolactane/tragacanth.

 From the results of this study, loading polycaprolactane scaffold with silymarin increases the proliferation and survivability of PC12 cells compared to polycaprolactane/supporting scaffold, which may be a good candidate for neural tissue engineering.