Enhancing bone tissue regeneration with rGO-coated Si-Ca-P bioceramic scaffold

Abstract

Ceramic-based bone graft substitutes have been extensively studied for bone tissue engineering, due to their biocompatibility and osteoconductivity. Additionally, several studies have shown how graphene and its derivatives, due to their unique properties, can strongly promote cell adhesion, by enhance cellular adherence, proliferation, and osteoblast differentiation, and how graphene-based materials can promote spontaneous osteoblastic differentiation. The aim of this study was the use of a calcium silicophosphate ceramic, previously prepared in our laboratory, that presents excellent in vitro bioactivity, optimizing its operation by rGO coating. After coating with rGO any significant differences were observed in diffraction peaks from starting calcium silicophosphate ceramic, and SEM analysis showed a rough and undulating surface that favored a high specific surface area for promoting cell adhesion, proliferation and differentiation of cells. It could be confirmed by in vitro cell cultured with ahMSCs, showing adhesion and growing for cells with interconnected filaments extending over the surface, covering it after 7 days.