A Novel Fabrication Method of Macroporous Biodegradable Polymer Scaffolds Using Gas Foaming Salt as a Porogen Additive 

 -  Journal of Biomedical Materials Research Part B: Applied BioMaterials, 53(1), p.1-7, 2000 .
<br/><br/> Highly open porous biodegradable poly(L-lactic acid)[PLLA]scaffolds for tissue regeneration were fabricated by using ammonium bicarbonate as an efficient gas foaming agent as well as a particulate porogen salt. A binary mixture of PLLA-solvent gel containing dispersed ammonium bicarbonate salt particles, which became a paste state, was cast in a mold and subsequently immersed in a hot water solution to permit the evolution of ammonia and carbon dioxide within the solidifying polymer matrix. This resulted in the expansion of pores within the polymer matrix to a great extent, leading to well interconnected macroporous scaffolds having mean pore diameters of around 300-400 mm, ideal for high-density cell seeding. Rat hepatocytes seeded into the scaffolds exhibited about 95 
<br/><br/><label>Subjects--Topical Terms: </label><br/>BIODEGRADABLE POLYMERS<br/>POLY(L-LACTIC ACID)<br/>SCAFFOLDS<br/>TISSUE ENGINEERING<br/>AMMONIUM CARBONATE