Biocompatibility of CaSiO<sub>3</sub> /High-Density Polyethylene Composites Prepared by Hot-Pressing

Abstract

We have reported that CaSiO3 ceramics show very fast bone-like apatite formation in simulated body fluid (SBF). However, CaSiO3 ceramics have disadvantages in their mechanical properties and shapability. It is therefore more effective to develop composites of CaSiO3 particles dispersed in a matrix of polymer or metal. Such composites are usually prepared by homogeneously blending the ceramic powder with the matrix component. This method is, however, ineffective for the preparation of biocompatible polymers or metals because only the surfaces containing accidentally-exposed ceramic particles play a role in generating apatite in SBF. It is therefore necessary to add a large volume of ceramic powder and also to abrade the surface to expose more of the ceramic particles. In this study, CaSiO3/high-density polyethylene (HDPE) composites were prepared by hot-pressing to introduce surface CaSiO3 particles and their biocompatibilities were evaluated under in vitro conditions using SBF. CaSiO3 powders were spread on a HDPE plate and hot-pressed at 140oC and 4.9-14.7 MPa for 2 min. The composite sample (about 10×10×1 mm3 in size) was immersed in 30ml SBF (sample/solution ratio of 2.5 g/l) at 36.5oC. After 14 days soaking, the apatite product particles covered most of the composite surface and formed apatite layers. Bone-like apatite particles were formed only on the surface regions containing exposed CaSiO3 particles but no apatite was formed on the CaSiO3 particles buried in the HDPE matrix. The results show that this surface deposition method is very effective in developing biocompatibility in the composites using very small amounts of CaSiO3 powder (about <1 %v) compared with results reported for hydroxyapatite and AW glass-ceramic powders (requiring about 40 %v). It is also found that the inhomogeneous state of the CaSiO3 particles in the surface of the present composites strongly influences their biocompatibility. It will be necessary to improve the homogeneity of CaSiO3 dispersion in the surface of the composites to achieve a more uniform surface apatite layer.