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Multi-channeled nerve guidance conduit is a prospective way to repair peripheral nerve injury, which is still difficult to be fabricated. A novel extrusion-stretching method was utilized in this study to produce multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) loaded multi-channeled nerve conduits with improved flexibility and versatility. The channels and geography of the conduits were tunable. The results showed that the mechanical properties of the multi-channeled nerve conduits were suitable for peripheral nerve restoration. MWCNTs increased the biocompatibility of the multi-channeled nerve conduits. This study proved that the MWCNTs loaded multi-channeled produced by extrusion-stretching method have great potential to repair peripheral nerve injury. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The core-shell structure conduit with conductive, antibacterial, and highly piezoelectric properties was designed and fabricated by a multi-step process. First, the shell structure was fabricated by rolling the co-electrospun mats of polycaprolactone/polyvinylidene fluoride and gelatin incorporated with polyaniline/graphene (PAG) nanocomposites. Then, the fabricated mats were filled with gelatin/chitosan hydrogels containing PAG and zinc oxide nanoparticles. Characterization of the intermediate materials and the final conduit revealed high electrical conductivity and remarkable output voltage for shell and core materials. MTT assay and antibacterial tests confirmed bioactivity and antibacterial properties of shells and cores. The results confirmed appropriateness of the conduit for nerve regeneration applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]