The use of poly(lactic acid) (PLA) in bone tissue engineering

Bone is a tissue that can regenerate and repair itself when minor damage occurs; however, it is insufficient to repair large defects. Today, various treatments to repair bone defects are limited due to risks such as lack of donors, genetic differences, infection, and tissue rejection. Although traditional metals are used extensively in bone treatments, these materials have many disadvantages. In recent years, biodegradable biopolymers such as poly(lactic) acid (PLA), polyetheretherketone (PEEK), polycaprolactone (PCL), and poly (glycolic acid) PGA have attracted growing interest due to their properties such as lightweight, high mechanical strength, biocompatibility, and high processability. In recent years, these polymer materials have been extensively used in the medical field. PLA is known to be preferred in bone tissue engineering applications as it is a biomaterial that supports cell processes, including migration, proliferation, distribution, and differentiation. In recent years, alongside traditional methods for producing bone scaffolds, innovative technological approaches have emerged. Traditional manufacturing methods, however, often lack precise control over scaffold porosity, prompting a shift towards advanced designs and rapid prototyping techniques. In bone scaffolds produced with additive manufacturing, it is possible to create 3D porous bone scaffolds with internal connections. In addition, PLA-based composite scaffolds have been studied to improve the mechanical and biological properties of pure PLA bone scaffolds, such as osteogenicity, porosity, and mechanical strength. This study presents a review of the PLA-based composite bone scaffolds in bone tissue engineering applications.