Processing and characterization of calcium silicate whiskers reinforced beta-tricalcium phosphate scaffolds

• Grant number: 12/07897-3
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Scientific Initiation
• Start date: July 01, 2012
• End date: June 30, 2013
• Field of knowledge: Engineering - Biomedical Engineering - Bioengineering
• Principal Investigator: Eliandra de Sousa Trichês
• Grantee: Cynthia Guimarães de Paula
• Host Institution: Instituto de Ciência e Tecnologia (ICT). Universidade Federal de São Paulo (UNIFESP). Campus São José dos Campos. São José dos Campos , SP, Brazil

Abstract

Scaffolds are defined as supports that serve as substrates for cellular growth, proliferation, and differentiation, thus they must be biocompatible, have optimum degradation rates, show porosity and interconnectivity, and have favorable mechanical and biological properties for tissue growth. One of the processing techniques for producing this class of material is a gel-casting method associated with the aeration of ceramic suspension. This method consists of gelation the suspension by in situ polymerizations of monomers soluble in water, which create a rigid cell body, with high green strength, porosity up to 95%, and cells that tend to sphericity and pore size between 50-600 µm. The porosity, the pore size, and its interconnectivity have great importance to the scaffold performance because they play a fundamental role in the new tissue formation. To avoid a loss of mechanical properties with increasing porosity, it is necessary an adjustment between both properties. In the fabrication of scaffolds for bone tissue therapy, calcium phosphates, more specifically beta-tricalcium phosphate (beta-TCP), have received researchers' attention because their reabsorption, morphology, and chemical composition are similar to the bone mineral phase. The aim of this work is to evaluate the effect of whiskers calcium silicate (wollastonite) addition on the physical and mechanical properties of beta-TCP scaffolds produced by the gel casting method. The morphological, physical, and mechanical properties of scaffolds will be determined and their mass loss in a saline solution will also be assessed.(AU)

Scientific publications

(References retrieved automatically from Web of Science and SciELO through information on FAPESP grants and their corresponding numbers as mentioned in the publications by the authors)

DE SIQUEIRA, LILIAN; DE PAULA, CYNTHIA GUIMARDES; GOUVEIA, RUBIA FIGUEREDO; MOTISUKE, MARIANA; TRICHES, ELIANDRA DE SOUSA. Evaluation of the sintering temperature on the mechanical behavior of beta-tricalcium phosphate/calcium silicate scaffolds obtained by gelcasting method. JOURNAL OF THE MECHANICAL BEHAVIOR OF BIOMEDICAL MATERIALS, v. 90, p. 635-643, FEB 2019. (10/00863-0, 11/09240-9, 12/07897-3)