Revealing the Auxetic Behavior of Biomimetic Multi-material and Region-specific Nanofibrous Scaffolds via Synchrotron Multiscale Digital Volume Correlation: Innovative Building Blocks for the Enthesis Regeneration

Abstract

Enthesis lesions are one of the prevalent causes of injuries in the tendon tissue. The gradient of mineralization, extracellular matrix organization and auxetic mechanical properties, make enthesis regeneration challenging. Innovative electrospun fascicle-inspired nanofibrous poly(L-lactic)acid/collagen type I blend scaffolds were developed. Specifically, a mineralized fibrocartilage-inspired region (with/without nano-mineralization with hydroxyapatite), where random and aligned nanofibers coexist, is connected to a tendon-like region made of aligned nanofibers, through a conical non-mineralized fibrocartilage-inspired junction. Scanning electron microscopy and synchrotron nano-tomography show the morphological biomimicry of scaffolds with the natural tendon fascicles. Human mesenchymal stromal cells spheroids cultures confirm a balanced expression of both tendon, cartilage and bone markers on the non-mineralized scaffolds compared with the mineralized ones. Mechanical tests, at different physiological strain-rates, reveal a biomimetic mechanical behavior of scaffolds and the ability of junctions to tune the mechanics of their surrounding sites. Multiscale synchrotron in situ tensile tests, coupled with Digital Volume Correlation, elucidate the full-field strain distribution of scaffolds from the structural down to the nanofiber level, highlighting the auxetic mechanical behavior of junctions typical of the natural enthesis. The findings and cutting-edge investigations of our study suggest the suitability of these enthesis-inspired fascicles as innovative scaffolds for enhanced enthesis regeneration.