Synthesis, Characterization and Biological Evaluation of a New Sol-Gel Derived B and Zn-Containing Bioactive Glass: In Vitro Study

Abstract

In this study we employed the sol-gel method to synthesize new CaO–P2O5–SiO2–ZnO–B2O3 bioactive glasses. Three samples with various B2O3 content (5, 10 and 15 mol %) was prepared and their bioactivity were evaluated by immersion in simulated body fluid (SBF) and the glasses were characterized using X-ray diffraction (XRD), Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The experimental results revealed that with increasing the amount of boron content, a more crystalline domain can be observed in their XRD patterns and consequently the formation of hydroxyapatite (HA) increased. FTIR spectra showed that the sample containing 10 mol% of boron had the sharpest peaks attributed to the formation of hydroxyapatite. Biocompatibility of the samples was examined by MTT assay and alkaline phosphatase activity. The result ascertained that the synthesized bioactive glass had good biocompatibility and can serve as a bone substitute in bone defects.