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In the polycaprolactone/hydroxyapatite scaffold fabricated by the melting-extrusion-type 3D-printing system, hydroxyapatite (bioceramic) particles are usually covered by a thin-film polycaprolactone (thermoplastic polymer) layer because of the rheological characteristics of the melting-extrusion process. The original bioactive characteristics of the bioceramic particles can be disrupted by this thin-film thermoplastic polymer. Therefore, in this study, an alkaline erosion process was employed to eliminate the thin-film polycaprolactone layer to expose the hydroxyapatite particles. To investigate the influence of the enhanced exposure of hydroxyapatite on cell response and bone regeneration, the polycaprolactone scaffold, polycaprolactone scaffold with alkaline erosion, and polycaprolactone/hydroxyapatite scaffold were compared with the polycaprolactone/hydroxyapatite scaffold with alkaline erosion. Furthermore, to …