Silver-strontium-co-doped mesoporous bioactive glass functionalized 3D-printed B-tricalcium phosphate scaffolds for improving bone regeneration

• Grant number: 22/12217-3
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships abroad - Research
• Effective date (Start): March 05, 2023
• Effective date (End): March 04, 2024
• Field of knowledge: Engineering - Materials and Metallurgical Engineering - Nonmetallic Materials
• Principal Investigator: Eliandra de Sousa Trichês
• Grantee: Eliandra de Sousa Trichês
• Host Investigator: Marco Cicero Bottino
• 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
• Research place: University of Michigan, United States

Abstract

Strategies aimed at the development of bioactive and resorbable scaffolds, carriers with organic (growth factors, drugs) or inorganic (metal ions) therapeutic agents have become an alternative for the treatment of bone pathologies and are the focus of bone tissue engineering. Among the biomaterials used to manufacture scaffolds for the recovery and regeneration of bone tissue, the calcium phosphate-based ceramics stand out due to their similarity, in terms of structure and chemical composition, to the mineral phase of bone, and their excellent biocompatibility. B-tricalcium phosphate (B-TCP) is considered resorbable and has excellent osteoconductivity. Several techniques are used to produce bioceramic scaffolds and among them, 3D printing based on material extrusion, a type of additive manufacturing, that allows obtaining highly regular 3D structures with a good level of accuracy, resolution, and reproducibility. Recent reports are trying to obtain bioceramic scaffolds with hierarchical porous structures and functional surfaces. This can be achieved by coating the surface of the B-TCP scaffold with mesoporous bioactive glasses (MBGs) single and co-doped with metallic ions. To the best of our knowledge, there are no reports of 3D-printed B-TCP scaffolds coated with MBG co-doped with silver (Ag+) and strontium (Sr+2) ions. Co-doping with Ag+ and Sr+2 has been explored as a promising pathway to confer antibacterial activity and improve bone formation ability, respectively. In this context, this project aims to silver-strontium-co-doped mesoporous bioactive glass functionalized 3D-printed B-TCP scaffolds for bone tissue engineering applications. This project includes the synthesis and characterization of (Ag/Sr)-MBGs powder, the production of 3D-printed scaffolds and coating with single and co-doped (Ag/Sr)-MBGs, and a complete evaluation of the biological properties in vitro and in vivo, as well as antibacterial action. (AU)