Composites developed by combining bioactive glasses and biopolymers are attractive materials for use in bone tissue engineering scaffolds due to their bioactivity, biocompatibility, osteoconductivity, and mechanical properties. From this point of view, in this study, three-dimensional polymer/bioactive composite scaffolds were fabricated using the polymer foam replication method. To achieve this goal, in the first stage, a new bioactive glass composition in the system SiO2-CaO-Na2O-P2O5 was developed with the incorporation of copper, which has antibacterial and angiogenic properties. Scaffolds that mimic the structure of the foams were obtained after the heat treatment process. Then, the scaffolds were coated with gelatine at different percentages (1 and 3 wt%) to improve the mechanical properties of the scaffolds. Microstructural, physical, chemical, and mechanical properties of the composite scaffolds were investigated using scanning electron microscopy (SEM), energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS), Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), X-ray diffraction analysis (XRD), compressive strength tests, and porosity measurements. Furthermore, bioactivity and biodegradability behavior of the samples were determined by in vitro simulated body fluid (SBF) studies. The results showed that all scaffolds favored the precipitation of a calcium phosphate layer when soaked in SBF; they could also deliver controlled doses of copper to the SBF medium. It was concluded that scaffolds coated with gelatine may be promising candidates for bone tissue engineering applications due to their porosity, bioactivity, and appropriate biodegradation rate.
