Modelling and Simulation of Conformal Biomimetic Scaffolds for Bone Tissue Engineering

In this work, a procedure for modelling and simulating conformal biomimetic scaffolds for bone tissue engineering is presented. Starting from a three-dimensional biomedical model of a real human mandible presenting a severe damage, a conformal shape was modelled and filled with an irregular beam network mimicking human trabecular bone. The material considered for the realization of the scaffold was hydroxyapatite derived from fish industry by-products, a material that is highly biocompatible to human bone. Several simulations were conducted on a beam-based wireframe model by varying the radius of the trabeculae, until reaching a stiffness of the scaffold equal to that of human bone. This represents a good design practice to avoid the stress shielding effect on growing bone tissue and functionality losses during bone regeneration. The resulting porosity and the average pore size, which are fundamental properties to ensure a proper vascularization of the growing tissue, were measured and compared to literature data, showing an acceptable agreement. The proposed beam-based approach for modelling and simulating conformal irregular scaffolds appeared as an interactive, fast, and versatile procedure that can be applied in the design stage of conformal biomimetic scaffolds for bone tissue regeneration.