Bioresorption and biodegradation of the 3D-printed gene-activated bone substitutes based on octacalcium phosphate

Abstract

Gene-activated materials are getting translated to the clinical practice that is the result of increased research activity in this area. There is significant success in development of gene-activated materials for bone grafting procedures. In our study, we made the gene-activated bone substitute based on octacalcium phosphate and plasmid DNA with VEGFA gene using three-dimensional printing technologies (discs, size of 10x2 mm). During the subcutaneous test in rats, the dynamics of bioresorption of materials was evaluated in comparison with the control that was presented by the scaffold without gene constructs. 60-90 days after surgery, volumes of the implants twicely decreased while the diameter declined by 20% at 180 days, and there were no significant differences between the groups related to these parameters. According to a histological examination, no signs of pronounced inflammation were found in the operation zone, the materials were surrounded by a connective tissue capsule. Further studies are needed to evaluate the effect of gene-activated materials produced with the developed technology on reparative osteogenesis.