Biomimetic Fabrication and Characterization of BG/COL/HCA Scaffolds for Bone Tissue Engineering

Abstract

The bone tissue engineering scaffold was developed by compounded the type I collagen with the porous scaffold of the sol-gel derived bioactive glass (BG) in the system CaO-P2O5-SiO2. The resultant porous scaffold was treated in supersaturated calcification solution (SCS) to form the surface layer of hydroxyl-carbonate-apatite (HCA) since the type I collagen possessed good biocompatibility and bio-absorbability, and also, the ability of inducting calcium phosphates to precipitated inside and outside the collagen fibers where the collagen fibers acted as bio-macromolecules template for formation of bone-like inorganic minerals in nature bone such as: octo-calcium phosphate (OCP), tri-calcium phosphate (TCP) and hydroxyl-carbonate-apatite (HCA). On the other hand, the sol-gel derived bioactive glass also played an important role in formation of the above bio-minerals owing to its serial chemical reactions with the body fluid. The in vitro study in supersaturated calcification solution SCS indicated that the surface of the porous scaffold was able to induce formation of bone-like HCA crystals on the pore walls of the scaffold which possessed satisfactory cells biocompatibility.