The design of two different structural scaffolds using β-tricalcium phosphate (β-TCP) and collagen for bone tissue engineering

In the field of bone regeneration, regenerated bone graft has been the most primary concern rather than autografts and allografts. A regenerated bone graft may be developed by culturing and differentiating mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) in a porous scaffold. In this chapter, two different structural scaffolds were fabricated using β-TCP and collagen. One is a collagen-based scaffold with β-TCP particles fabricated using freeze-drying methods. A collagen/β-TCP scaffold is known as a “particle distributed scaffold.” The other is a β-TCP-based scaffold with porous collagen structure fabricated using the polyurethane template method and a subsequent freeze-drying method. A β-TCP/collagen scaffold is known as a “two phase structural scaffold.” Rat bone marrow MSCs were cultured in two different structural composite scaffolds for up to 28 days in order to evaluate the time-dependent behavior of the extracellular matrix formation and the mechanical characteristic of the scaffold-cell system.