Antibacterial nano-biocomposite scaffolds of Chitosan, Carboxymethyl Cellulose and Zn & Fe integrated Hydroxyapatite (Chitosan-CMC-FZO@HAp) for bone tissue engineering

The polymeric scaffolds are one of the most studied systems for biomedical applications. Yet, their enzymatic degradation and non-antibacterial ability are the major challenges for the researchers. In this regard, we designed Fe(III) doped ZnO integrated hydroxyapatite ZFHAp nanoparticles and prepared the natural biopolymer-based chitosan- carboxymethyl cellulose-ZFHAp scaffolds suitable for bone tissue engineering. The nanoparticles were successfully characterized with XRD and RAMAN spectroscopy and were found to be in hexagonal wurtzite HAp phase with Ca + Zn + Fe/P ratio of 1.7. The prepared nano-biocomposite scaffolds were microporous in structure (25–123 µm), and their biochemical behaviours such as porosity (60–80%), swelling, and enzymatic degradation (21–50%) were dependent on the concentrations of ZFHAp. The swelling and degradation of the prepared scaffolds were linearly related. The presence of 5% ZFHAp in the scaffolds (SCA-5) resulted in pore size of 92 ± 10 µm and 50% degradation time of 42 days. This scaffolds SCA-5 also showed self-antibacterial activities along with excellent cell proliferation ability. The present study designates the SCA-5 as plausible scaffolds for bone tissue engineering.