Poly (L-lactic acid) (PLLA) polymers are the most frequently used substrates for cell culture, tissue regeneration and orthopedic prostheses, mainly because of their atoxic characteristics and good biocompatibility. The objective of this study was to evaluate whether a higher density or different pore diameters (less than 45, 180-250, and 250-350 µm) would change the growth pattern of cultured cells. The cells were found to adhere to and spread over all PLLA scaffolds studied. The cells also showed similar proliferation on dense and porous PLLA scaffolds, except for PLLA scaffolds with a smaller pore diameter. The cytochemical data showed high metabolic cellular activity on the various substrates. Overall, the results indicated satisfactory cell growth and proliferation on the different PLLA scaffolds studied, especially for those with pore diameters of 180-250 µm and 250-350 µm.

The use of porous bioresorbable scaffolds in the field of tissue engineering represents an alternative for the treatment of lesions and losses of biological tissues. This work evaluates the leaching salt effect of two different processes and polymers. Dense and porous scaffolds were prepared with poly(epson-caprolactone) (PCL) and poly(D,L-lactic acid-co-glycolic acid) (50/50) (PLGA50) by casting and melting compression process. Sodium citrate with particles sizes of 180-250 µm of diameter was used as porogen. The dense and porous samples were immersed in distilled water for 30 hours and evaluated for pH and mass variations, by scanning electronic microscopy (SEM), differential scanning calorimetric (DSC) and thermogravimetric analysis (TGA). The results of the analyses showed that the inclusion of the salt and leaching process did not affect the properties of the scaffold, indicating that the method is useful to make porous scaffolds to be potentially used in tissue engineering.