Project Title: Fabrication and characterization of patient-specific scaffolds for animal implantation

Acronym: Art. 83

Funding Entity: University of Seville

Participating Entities:  University of Extremadura, University of Seville

Duration: 13/06/2019 – 31/12/2020

Budget: 24.200 € (UEX)

Principal Investigator (PI): Antonia Pajares

Number of researchers: 2

Abstract:

Tissue engineering scaffolds for in vivo experiments on long-bony defects using internally-stabilization were developed and used for in vivo testing and the development of computational methods and a standardized protocol required to optimize ceramic scaffolds for load-bearing bony defects stabilized with flexible fixations. The optimization problem was defined for applications to sheep metatarsus defects. It covers biological parameters (porosity, pore size, and the specific surface area) and mechanical constraints based on in vivo and in vitro results reported in the literature. The optimized parameters (59.30% of porosity, 5768.91 m⁻¹ of specific surface area, and 360.80 μm of pore size) and the of the selected structure were validated in vitro by means of tomographic images and compression tests of six 3D-printed samples. Divergences between the design and measured values of the optimized parameters, mainly due to manufacturing defects, are consistent with the previous studies. Using the mixed experimental-mathematical scaffold-design procedure described, they could be implanted in vivo with instrumented external fixators, therefore facilitating biomechanical monitoring of the regeneration process.