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Background: Biopolymer scaffolds have received great interest in academic and industrial environment because of their supreme characteristics like biological, mechanical, chemical, and cost saving in the biomedical science. There are various attempts for incorporation of biopolymers with cheap natural micro- or nanoparticles like lignin (Lig), alginate, and gums to prepare new materials with enhanced properties. Methods: In this work, the electrospinning (ELS) technique as a promising cost-effective method for producing polymeric scaffold fibers was used, which mimics extracellular matrix structure for soft tissue engineering applications. Nanocomposites of Lig and polycaprolactone (PCL) scaffold produced with ELS technique. Nanocomposite containings (0, 5, 10, and 15 wt.%) of Lig were prepared with addition of Lig powder into the PCL solution while stirring at the room temperature. The bioactivity, swelling properties, morphological and mechanical tests were conducted for all the samples to investigate the nanocomposite scaffold features. Results: The results showed that scaffold with 10 wt.% Lig have appropriate porosity, biodegradation, minimum fiber diameter, optimum pore size as well as enhanced tensile strength, and young modulus compared with pure PCL. Degradation test performed through immersion of samples in the phosphate-buffer saline showed that degradation of PCL nanocomposites could accelerate up to 10% due to the addition of Lig. Conclusions: Electrospun PCL-Lig scaffold enhanced the biological response of the cells with the mechanical signals. The prepared nanocomposite scaffold can choose for potential candidate in the biomedical science.

Introduction: Bone tissue engineering proposes a suitable way to regenerate lost bones. Different materials have been considered for use in bone tissue engineering. Hydroxyapatite (HA) is a significant success of bioceramics as a bone tissue repairing biomaterial. Among different bioceramic materials, recent interest has been risen on fluorinated hydroxyapatites, (FHA, Ca 10 (PO 4 ) 6 F x (OH) 2−x ). Fluorine ions can promote apatite formation and improve the stability of HA in the biological environments. Therefore, they have been developed for bone tissue engineering. The aim of this study was to synthesize and characterize the FHA nanopowder via mechanochemical (MC) methods. Materials and Methods: Natural hydroxyapatite (NHA) 95.7 wt.% and calcium fluoride (CaF 2 ) powder 4.3 wt.% were used for synthesis of FHA. MC reaction was performed in the planetary milling balls using a porcelain cup and alumina balls. Ratio of balls to reactant materials was 15:1 at 400 rpm rotation speed. The structures of the powdered particles formed at different milling times were evaluated by X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). Results: Fabrication of FHA from natural sources like bovine bone achieved after 8 h ball milling with pure nanopowder. Conclusion: F− ion enhances the crystallization and mechanical properties of HA in formation of bone. The produced FHA was in nano-scale, and its crystal size was about 80-90 nm with sphere distribution in shape and size. FHA powder is a suitable biomaterial for bone tissue engineering.