Abstract: Objective Stem cell- and biomimetic scaffold-based myocardial tissue engineering is becoming one of the most promising methods for constructing artificial myocardium in vitro, however the possible influence of biomimetic scaffolds on cardiomyocyte (CM) differentiation of induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) remains to be elaborated. Methods The Oct4-GFP+ mouse iPSCs (miPSCs) were seeded directly on the poly-(ε-caprolactone) (PCL) nanofibrous biomimetic scaffolds, which were fabricated by an electrospun technology, and differentiated for 15 days. The development of CMs was verified both by immunofluorescence staining and by Western blot detection. Results The results showed that miPSCs, expressing Oct4 and Nanog before differentiation, proliferated on the PCL nanofibrous scaffold and grew in colonies during spontaneous differentiation period. Immunofluorescence staining revealed that some of the miPSCs-derived cells were co-labeled with cardiomyocyte specific proteins, such as cardiac Troponin T (cTnT) and myosin light chain 2a (MLC2a). Moreover, Western blot demonstrated that cells derived from miPSCs after differentiation for 15 days expressed higher levels of cTnT, MLC2 and α-myosin heavy chain (α-MHC) than controls. Conclusion Theses results suggest that the PCL nanofibrous scaffold could support proliferation and cardiomyocyte differentiation of the Oct4-GFP+ miPSC.

Key words: induced pluripotent stem cell, poly-(ε-caprolactone), nanofibrous scaffold, cardiomyocyte