Abstract
Material science is a relevant discipline in support of regenerative medicine. Indeed, tissue regeneration requires the use of scaffolds able to guide and sustain the natural cell metabolism towards tissue regrowth. This need is particularly important in musculoskeletal regeneration, such as in the case of diseased bone or osteocartilaginous regions for which calcium phosphate-based scaffolds are considered as the golden solution. However, various technological barriers related to conventional ceramic processing have thus far hampered the achievement of biomimetic and bioactive scaffolds as effective solutions for still unmet clinical needs in orthopaedics. Driven by such highly impacting socioeconomic needs, new nature-inspired approaches promise to make a technological leap forward in the development of advanced biomaterials. The present review illustrates ion-doped apatites as biomimetic materials whose bioactivity resides in their unstable chemical composition and nanocrystallinity, both of which are, however, destroyed by the classical sintering treatment. In the following, recent nature-inspired methods preventing the use of high-temperature treatments, based on (i) chemically hardening bioceramics, (ii) biomineralisation process, and (iii) biomorphic transformations, are illustrated. These methods can generate products with advanced biofunctional properties, particularly biomorphic transformations represent an emerging approach that could pave the way to a technological leap forward in medicine and also in various other application fields.
Highlights
Given the various drawbacks inherent in the use of autologous or heterologous bone grafts, which are still considered a gold standard of care for the treatment of bone defects, the main focus is to date on the development of synthetic scaffolds, capable to improve the osteogenesis and vascularisation in critical size bone defects
Hydroxyapatite (Ca10 (PO4 )6 (OH)2, HA) is the most widespread material among the calcium phosphates used as bioceramics because its composition is very close to the mineral component of human bone and tooth enamel
As for the biomimetic deposition approach, it has been shown that chemical precipitation of calcium nitrate and diammonium hydrogen phosphate salts, occurring in simulated body fluid (SBF) at 37 ◦ C
Summary
Publisher’s Note: MDPI stays neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations. Chemical biomimesis is well illustrated by apatitic nanoparticles, endowed with ion doping that enhances the bioactivity and antibacterial properties, and in the following, recent approaches will be discussed that aim to achieve such nanocrystalline phases with their unique biologic properties in the form of nanostructured 3D scaffolds, which is the real challenge in biomaterials science In this respect, various nature-inspired approaches could help to develop new bioceramics, representing potential next-generation devices capable to overcome existing limitations and making a substantial leap forward in orthopaedic regenerative applications
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