Hopes on europium-coated titanium nanotubes and their opportunities in extra calcification

Abstract

Severe osseous defects are treated with biometals and surgical interventions. Titanium and its alloys dominate the world of orthopaedic implants because of their irresistible mechanical properties and compatibility with the body. Nevertheless, the intrinsic bio-inertness affects their integration with the body. Doping with rare-earth elements (‘vitamins’ of the industries) redefines the material properties and upcasts the smartness in them. The study discusses the coating of titania nanotubes with europium and details their response in terms of material properties, corrosion and cell compatibility. The obsession of the cells towards the nanomorphology was taken into consideration and partially coated europium on the TNTA (Eu-TNTA) surface. The crystallographic morphology detected a peak shift of 0.17° that affirmed the partial incorporation of Eu in the TNTA surface when subjected to the heating process. The uncompromised corrosion resistance of Eu-TNTA was proof of their coating integrity. Also, the maximum corrosion resistance was obtained at the coating concentration of 2 mM. The concurrent effect of the Eu and TNTA induced the spider web-like connections in the nanotubes and further developed into nanolamellar structures forming cauliflower morphology. The cell adhesion on Eu-TNTA and proliferation was accessed with the confocal imaging and MTT assay.