Composite Nanofibers Containing Multiwall Carbon Nanotubes as Biodegradable Membranes in Reconstructive Medicine

We have tested titanium (Ti) plates that are used for bone reconstruction in maxillofacial surgery, in combination with five types of novel long-resorbable biomaterials: (i) PCL(0)—polycaprolactone without additives, (ii) PCL(MWCNT)—polycaprolactone with the addition of multiwall carbon nanotubes (MWCNT), (iii) PCL(OH)—polycaprolactone doped with multiwall carbon nanotubes (MWCNT) containing –OH hydroxyl groups, (iv) PCL(COOH)—polycaprolactone with the addition of multiwall carbon nanotubes (MWCNT) containing carboxyl groups, and (v) PCL(TI)—polycaprolactone with the addition of Ti nanoparticles. The structure and properties of the obtained materials have been examined with the use of Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM), Transmission Electron Microscopy (TEM), Raman spectroscopy, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), and/or X-ray powder diffraction (XRD). Titanium BR plates have been covered with: (i) PCL(0) fibers (PCL(0BR)—connection plates), (ii) PCL(MWCNT) fibers (PCL(MWCNTBR)—plates), (iii) PCL(OH) fibers (PCL(OHBR)—plates), (iv) PCL(COOH) (PCL(COOHBR)—plates), (v) PCL(TI) fiber (PCL(TIBR)—connection plates). Such modified titanium plates were exposed to X-ray doses corresponding to those applied in head and neck tumor treatment. The potential leaching of toxic materials upon the irradiation of such modified titanium plates, and their effect on normal human dermal fibroblasts (NHDF) have been assessed by MTT assay. The presented results show variable biological responses depending on the modifications to titanium plates.