Design of additively manufactured lattice structures for tissue regeneration

Additive Manufacturing technologies allow for the direct fabrication of lightweight structures with improved properties. In this context, Fused Deposition Modelling (FDM) has also been considered to design 3D multifunctional scaffolds with complex morphology, tailored biological, mechanical and mass transport properties. As an example, poly(?-caprolactone) (PCL), surface-modified PCL and PCL-based nanocomposite scaffolds were fabricated and analysed. The effects of structural and morphological features (i.e., sequence of stacking, fiber spacing distance, pore size and geometry), surface modification and nanoparticles on the in vitro biological and mechanical performances were investigated.