Summary
Damaged corneas are often repaired using human amniotic membrane, but a synthetic substitute would be more available and reproducible. This study develops electrospun polycaprolactone (PCL) nanofibre matrices — in both randomly oriented and aligned forms — as biocompatible scaffolds for ophthalmic wound healing. To reduce PCL’s hydrophobicity and potentially improve cell compatibility, the authors also blended it with poly(glycerol sebacate) (PGS) or chitosan. The matrices were characterised by electron microscopy, infrared spectroscopy and water contact angle, then seeded with human corneal epithelial cells and keratocytes; adhesion was assessed by F-actin staining and metabolic activity by a CCK-8 assay over 20 days. All matrices supported adhesion and proliferation, forming confluent cell sheets, with oriented growth on the aligned fibres — though blending did not measurably raise biocompatibility.