Preparation of CEL2 glass‐ceramic porous scaffolds coated with chitosan microspheres that have a drug delivery function

Abstract

AbstractThe present work focused on the preparation of CEL2 bioactive glass (SiO2–P2O5–CaO–MgO–K2O–Na2O) scaffolds loaded with chitosan microspheres. Chitosan microspheres, with a mean particle size of 0.55 μm ± 0.25 μm and loaded with acetaminophen, were obtained through the water‐in‐oil single emulsion solvent evaporation method and were adhered to the surface of the scaffolds by a simple dip‐coating technique. The characterization of the microsphere‐loaded scaffolds, before and after immersion in simulated body fluid (SBF), was performed by scanning electron microscopy, X‐ray diffraction, and infrared spectroscopy. In vitro bioactivity was performed for 21 days. The glass‐ceramic microsphere‐loaded scaffolds showed more than 70% interconnected porosity and an average compressive strength of 1.2 ± 0.43 MPa after immersion in SBF. They also showed the formation of a hydroxyapatite layer from the first day of immersion in SBF, demonstrating their high bioactivity. The microspheres were shown to be homogeneously dispersed on the scaffold surfaces. After 120 hours, the biologic tests showed good fibroblast cell proliferation onto the scaffolds. The encapsulated drug in the microspheres was released by diffusion in a sustained manner (90% and 99% in 200 hours). The results suggest that scaffolds have a promising role in applications of bone tissue engineering.