The surface properties of biomaterials mainly govern their success in biomedical applications in contact with tissues. In most cases, surface modification represents a convenient strategy for the improvement of the biocompatibility and bioactivity of biomaterials. The use of an electrically conductive scaffold for bone tissue engineering can potentially be used for stimulating cell growth and tissue regeneration by facilitating physioelectrical signal transfer In this work, highly porous 45S5 Bioglass®-based scaffolds fabricated by foam replication technique were coated with electrically conductive organic-inorganic hybrid layers containing graphene by a solution method. α,ω-Triethoxysilane terminated poly(ethylene glycol) and tetraethoxysilane were used as the precursors of the organic-inorganic hybrid coatings, that contained 1.5 %wt of homogeneously dispersed graphene nanoplatelets. The resulting coated scaffolds retained their original high porosity and interconnected pore structure after graphene coating. The presence of graphene did not impair the bioactivity of the scaffolds in simulated body fluid. The graphene-coated scaffolds were tested in vitro by cell culture in order to evaluate the biocompatibility.
45S5 Bioglass®-Derived Scaffolds Coated with Organic-Inorganic Hybrids Containing Graphene
VALENTINI, LUCA;
2013
Abstract
The surface properties of biomaterials mainly govern their success in biomedical applications in contact with tissues. In most cases, surface modification represents a convenient strategy for the improvement of the biocompatibility and bioactivity of biomaterials. The use of an electrically conductive scaffold for bone tissue engineering can potentially be used for stimulating cell growth and tissue regeneration by facilitating physioelectrical signal transfer In this work, highly porous 45S5 Bioglass®-based scaffolds fabricated by foam replication technique were coated with electrically conductive organic-inorganic hybrid layers containing graphene by a solution method. α,ω-Triethoxysilane terminated poly(ethylene glycol) and tetraethoxysilane were used as the precursors of the organic-inorganic hybrid coatings, that contained 1.5 %wt of homogeneously dispersed graphene nanoplatelets. The resulting coated scaffolds retained their original high porosity and interconnected pore structure after graphene coating. The presence of graphene did not impair the bioactivity of the scaffolds in simulated body fluid. The graphene-coated scaffolds were tested in vitro by cell culture in order to evaluate the biocompatibility.I documenti in IRIS sono protetti da copyright e tutti i diritti sono riservati, salvo diversa indicazione.
