Sustained-release of naproxen sodium from electrospun-aligned PLLA/PCL scaffolds

Spontaneous tendon healing may result in reduced tissue functionality. In view of this, tissue engineering (TE) emerges as a promising approach in promoting proper tendon regeneration. However, unfavourable post-surgical adhesion formations restrict adequate tendon healing through the TE approach. Naproxen sodium (NPS), a non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID), has been demonstrated to prevent adhesions by inhibiting inflammatory response. Therefore, in this work, various factors, i.e. polymer composition (i.e. different poly-l-lactic acid (PLLA) to polycaprolactone (PCL) ratios) and percentage of water (H2O) to hexafluoroisopropanol (HFIP) as co-solvent, were investigated to understand how these can influence the release of NPS from electrospun scaffolds. By adjusting the amount of H2O as the co-solvent, NPS could be released sustainably for as long as two weeks. Scaffold breaking strength was also enhanced with the addition of H2O as the co-solvent. This NPS-loaded scaffold showed no significant cytotoxicity, and L929 murine fibroblasts cultured on the scaffolds were able to proliferate and align along the fiber orientation. These scaffolds with desirable tendon TE characteristics would be promising candidates in achieving better tendon regeneration in vivo.