Nanocomposites comprising biocompatible polymer matrices and inorganic nanoparticle fillers represent a new group of biomaterials for tissue engineering scaffolds and biomedical implants and devices. It has been demonstrated that addition of ceramic nanoparticles to polymer matrices greatly influences mechanical, physical and biological properties. The key to good performance is to achieve good homogeneity of the nanoparticle dispersion and uniform microstructure. Thus, these systems require controlled formulation methods (melt/solution processing, improved mixing). Much of the research to date has focused on homopolymer/nanofiller composites, while block or multiblock copolymers/nanofillers have not been yet extensively studied. Multiblock poly(aliphatic/aromatic-ester)s (PEDT) represent novel and interesting biocompatible materials offering the processability of thermoplastics combined with the good elasticity of rubber (thermoplastic elastomers, TPE). It is expected that incorporation of biocompatible ceramic phases (e.g. TiO2 nanoparticles) may be effective in increasing bioactivity as well as cell adhesion and growth for use of the composites in tissue engineering and other biomedical applications.

In this contribution, an original approach to prepare nanocomposites using in-situ polycondensation of PETD copolymer in presence of TiO2 nanoparticles will be presented. The thermoplastic elastomer/TiO2 nanostructured composites exhibited tensile strengths 100% higher compared to that of neat polymer samples, while the elongation at breaking point increased by 300% with addition of titania nanoparticles. The preliminary results of the cell culture investigation indicate that both concentration of ceramic nanoparticles as well as the nanotopography of the composite surface affect cell proliferation. Further studies regarding the optimization of elastomer/TiO2 nanostructured composites in terms of mechanical and biological properties will be discussed.

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