Mechanical and cell culture supportive characteristics of scaffolds manufactured using chopped nanofibers of varying CNC/gelatin compositions

Abstract To increase the structural stability and cell cultivability of scaffolds during culture, this study manufactured nanowebs with varied gelatin and cellulose nanocrystal (CNC) compositions using an electrospinning machine. Then, a scaffold containing chopped nanofibers obtained through pulverization was constructed. These nanofibers were 800 ~ 850 nm in diameter and 40 ~ 50 μm long. The scaffold compressive strength was directly proportional to the CNC content, but inversely correlated with the swelling and decomposition ratios of the nanofibers. The scaffolds composed only of chopped gelatin nanofibers without CNC supported cell cultivability to the maximum. The scaffold structural stability increased with CNCs, which also reduced its rate of decomposition in the culture medium. However, cell attachment was enhanced by gelatin, which also elevated cultivability. Therefore, when manufacturing scaffolds for short- or long-term cell culture experiments, the gelatin or CNC contents should be increased, respectively.