Abstract
β-Tricalcium phosphate was combined with silica aerogel in composites prepared using the sol–gel technique and supercritical drying. The materials were used in this study to check their biological activity and bone regeneration potential with MG63 cell experiments. The composites were sintered in 100 °C steps in the range of 500–1000 °C. Their mechanical properties, porosities, and solubility were determined as a function of sintering temperature. Dissolution studies revealed that the released Ca-/P molar ratios appeared to be in the optimal range to support bone tissue induction. Cell viability, ALP activity, and type I collagen gene expression results all suggested that the sintering of the compound at approximately 700–800 °C as a scaffold could be more powerful in vivo to facilitate bone formation within a bone defect, compared to that documented previously by our research team. We did not observe any detrimental effect on cell viability. Both the alkaline phosphatase enzyme activity and the type I collagen gene expression were significantly higher compared with the control and the other aerogels heat-treated at different temperatures. The mesoporous silica-based aerogel composites containing β-tricalcium phosphate particles treated at temperatures lower than 1000 °C produced a positive effect on the osteoblastic activity of MG63 cells. An in vivo 6 month-long follow-up study of the mechanically strongest 1000 °C sample in rat calvaria experiments provided proof of a complete remodeling of the bone.
Highlights
This study was aimed at preparing, characterizing, and systematically testing β-tricalcium phosphate–mesoporous silica aerogel composites treated at different sintering temperatures (600, 700, 800, 900, and 1000 ◦ C), as well as investigating the effect of heating temperature on the dissolution rates of the chemical components and their connection with the osteoblastic activity of MG63 cells
The two important bioactive inorganic components required for bone regeneration, namely, β-tricalcium phosphate and water-soluble orthosilicate, were combined in this study in a special synthetic way to provide β-Tricalcium phosphate (β-TCP)–silica aerogel composites to check for their biological activity with MG63 cells and in vivo rat calvaria critical size defect experiments
A significant advantage of β-TCP–silica aerogel composites is that their physical strength and porosity can be tuned by the sintering temperature, which allows us to tailor the properties for a specific application
Summary
After a long period of nonmedical use [1,2], aerogels have attracted interest in the biomedical field in the last decade [3–5]. Aerogels are lightweight materials with extremely high porosity and a large specific surface area [6–8]. Their material-specific biocompatibility [9,10] and biodegradability [11,12] make them promising materials for several applications, such as drug delivery [13–16] and tissue engineering [17,18]. Silica aerogel-based composites and hybrids were synthesized most recently in our laboratory. They are biocompatible materials that are appropriate for drug delivery [19,20] and Biomedicines 2022, 10, 662. Biomedicines 2022, 10, 662 bone replacement purposes [17,18,21,22]. Silicon, their basic element, in the form of watersoluble orthosilicate ions, was found to be an important factor in bone metabolism [23]
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