Paper Title
AN IMPLANTABLE BIO-ELECTRO SCAFFOLD FOR BRAIN TISSUE ENGINEERING

Abstract
Abstract - One of the main challenges for neural tissue engineering is to design scaffolds suitable for implantation that allow cell proliferation to provide an environment similar to the extracellular matrix. Here, films of poly(vinyl alcohol-co-vinyl) acetate (PAcVA) were printed with gold-functionalized nanotubes of rotavirus VP6 protein (nVP6Au) in ordered patterns in series and in parallel to form the µChipVP6Au. The obtained bio-electrical material resulted in a biocompatible scaffold suitable for the culture of the embryonic mouse hypothalamus cell line mHypoE-N1. Then, the bio-electrical scaffold was implanted in the mice’s parietal cortex with no toxic effects observed. Our results showed that our bio-electrical implantable scaffold has tremendous potential as a platform for exogen cell implantation, a system for drug delivery, and an electrical scaffold for electrostimulation. Keywords - Polyvinyl Alcohol Co-Vinyl Acetate, Neural Tissue Engineering, Brain Implant, Nanotubes, Parkinson’s Disease.