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Presentation
3D Printed PLA Scaffolds to Promote Healing of Large Bone Defects
The Research and Scholarship Symposium (2013-2019)
  • Jacob W Cole, Cedarville University
  • Tiera Martinelli, Cedarville University
  • Mitchell T Ryan, Cedarville University
  • Sarah G Seman, Cedarville University
  • Daniel Sidle, Cedarville University
  • Stephen R Smith, Cedarville University
  • Rocco J Rotello, Cedarville University
  • Timothy L. Norman, Cedarville University
Type of Submission
Poster
Award
Best Experimental Study
Keywords
  • Tissue engineering,
  • bone,
  • 3D printing
Abstract

One challenge modern medicine faces is the ability to repair large bone defects and stimulate healing. Small defects typically heal naturally, but large bone defects do not and current solutions are to replace the missing tissue with biologically inert materials such as titanium. This limits the amount of bone healing as the defect is not repaired but rather replaced. The focus of our research is to develop a method of using 3D printing to create biodegradable scaffolds which promote bone in-growth and replacement. To accomplish this we used poly lactic acid (PLA) filament and a desktop 3D printer. To promote bone healing and provide mechanical support our team investigated different design methodologies to provide a scaffold of customizable stiffness while allowing cell attachment and in-growth. Our team used CAD modeling to create unique architecture design systems which we analyzed for stiffness using Finite Element Analysis (FEA). We developed a unit cell method of scaffold construction that allowed for customized stiffness of irregular shapes. We 3D printed our designs using a desktop 3D printer and verified our stiffness through mechanical tension and compression testing. We investigated cell viability of the scaffolds by immersing test specimens in culturing media and fibroblast cells. Fibroblast cells are from the same lineage as osteoblast cells but are much faster growing, allowing for more efficient testing. Specimens were left in the media for one week then a total cell count was performed. Scaffold designs were then evaluated based on stiffness and cell viability. We have produced several different viable models with appropriate stiffness for human trabecular bone and good cellular adhesion.

Campus Venue
Stevens Student Center Lobby
Location
Cedarville, OH
Start Date
4-11-2018 11:00 AM
End Date
4-11-2018 2:00 PM
Creative Commons License
Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 4.0
Citation Information
Jacob W Cole, Tiera Martinelli, Mitchell T Ryan, Sarah G Seman, et al.. "3D Printed PLA Scaffolds to Promote Healing of Large Bone Defects" (2018)
Available at: http://works.bepress.com/timothy_norman/209/