Bio-inspired gadolinium coated titania nanotubes for orthopaedics

Abstract

The distinguished corrosion behaviour along with the high strength-to-density ratio makes titanium (Ti) and its alloys an unavoidable material for long-term orthopaedic implant application. Though titanium was used as an implant material for many years in the clinical trial, the osseointegration of titanium implants with the bone around them is minimal leading to implant failure. For this study, combinational treatment of Cp-Ti by anodization using phosphate and fluoride electrolyte to form titania nanotubes (TNT) followed by dip coating with gadolinium nitrate solution. The corrosion behaviour of gadolinium-coated TNT (Gd-TNT) showed better corrosion resistance than TNT. The surface reactivity of the samples were analysed using a scanning electrochemical microscope (SECM). SECM is one of the powerful techniques to determine the surface chemical reactivity of metallic biomaterials in simulated body fluids. X-ray diffraction (XRD) analysis showed the anatase phase of titania nanotube formation. Attenuated Total Reflection Fourier Transform Infrared spectroscopy (ATR-FT-IR) was used to analyse the functional groups of the sample surface. The walls of the TNT were covered with gadolinium oxide which was confirmed by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) studies. Also, the mineralization of Gd-TNT was initiated after 24 h of immersion in simulated body fluid (SBF). The cytocompatibility studies indicated that the cell viability percentage of Gd-TNT was 69 % higher than the bare. In short, Gd-TNT can be used for treating the bone-related disorder.