Abstract
Magnesium (Mg)-based biomaterials hold considerable promise for applications in regenerative medicine. However, the degradation of Mg needs to be reduced to control toxicity caused by its rapid natural corrosion. In the process of developing new Mg alloys with various surface modifications, an efficient assessment of the relevant properties is essential. In the present study, a WE43 Mg alloy with a plasma electrolytic oxidation (PEO)-generated surface was investigated. Surface microstructure, hydrogen gas evolution in immersion tests and cytocompatibility were assessed. In addition, a novel in vitro immunological test using primary human lymphocytes was introduced. On PEO-treated WE43, a larger number of pores and microcracks, as well as increased roughness, were observed compared to untreated WE43. Hydrogen gas evolution after two weeks was reduced by 40.7% through PEO treatment, indicating a significantly reduced corrosion rate. In contrast to untreated WE43, PEO-treated WE43 exhibited excellent cytocompatibility. After incubation for three days, untreated WE43 killed over 90% of lymphocytes while more than 80% of the cells were still vital after incubation with the PEO-treated WE43. PEO-treated WE43 slightly stimulated the activation, proliferation and toxin (perforin and granzyme B) expression of CD8+ T cells. This study demonstrates that the combined assessment of corrosion, cytocompatibility and immunological effects on primary human lymphocytes provide a comprehensive and effective procedure for characterizing Mg variants with tailorable degradation and other features. PEO-treated WE43 is a promising candidate for further development as a degradable biomaterial.
Highlights
Due to the contrast differences, these areas can be assigned to alloying elements with a higher density than those of the magnesium matrix
This study aimed to investigate a plasma electrolytic oxidation (PEO)-surface on the magnesium alloy WE43 MEO
After incubation for three days, untreated WE43 killed over 90% of lymphocytes, while more than 80% of the cells were still vital after incubation with the PEO-treated WE43
Summary
Magnesium (Mg) is an abundant lightweight metal that has been extensively studied as a biomaterial for degradable implant applications in recent years [1,2]. One surface modification technique that has been shown to decelerate magnesium degradation while simultaneously yielding biocompatible and microstructured surfaces is plasma electrolytic oxidation (PEO), known as micro arc oxidation (MAO) [11,12]. By varying the electrolyte composition and/or electrochemical process parameters, surfaces with various physical and chemical characteristics can be generated [13,14,15]. The surface-topography of the microstructures of PEO-generated surfaces is affected by the electrochemical parameters and electrolytes used in the PEO-process [11,16]. The microstructural characteristics could be designed to optimize attachment of target tissue cells
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