Enhanced Osteoblast Functions on Nanophase Titania in Poly-lactic-co-glycolic Add (PLGA) Composites
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Enhanced Osteoblast Functions on Nanophase Titania in Poly-lactic-co-glycolic Acid (PLGA) Composites Huinan Liu1, Elliott B. Slamovich1 and Thomas J. Webster1,2 1 School of Materials Engineering, 501 Northwestern Avenue 2 Weldon School of Biomedical Engineering, 500 Central Drive Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN 47907, U.S.A. ABSTRACT Much work is needed in the design of more effective bone tissue engineering materials to induce the growth of normal bone tissue. Nanotechnology offers exciting alternatives to traditional bone implants since bone itself is a nanostructured material composed of nanofibered hydroxyapatite well-dispersed in a mostly collagen matrix. For this purpose, poly-lactic-coglycolic acid (PLGA) was dissolved in chloroform and nanometer grain size titania was dispersed by various sonication powers from 0 W to 166 W. Previous results demonstrated that the dispersion of titania in PLGA was enhanced by increasing the intensity of sonication and that greater osteoblast (bone-forming cells) adhesion correlated with improved nanophase titania dispersion in PLGA. However, adhesion of osteoblasts to material surfaces, alone, is not adequate to determine long-term functions of implant materials. For this reason, and as a next step to determine the efficacy of nanocomposites in bone applications, subsequent functions of osteoblasts on nanophase titania/PLGA composites were investigated in vitro in this study. For the first time, results correlated better osteoblast long-term functions, specifically the deposition of calcium-containing mineral, with improved nanophase titania dispersions in PLGA. In this manner, the present study demonstrated that PLGA composites with well-dispersed nanophase titania can improve osteoblast functions necessary for the further investigation of these materials in orthopedic applications. INTRODUCTION The scientific challenge of bone regeneration encompasses not only understanding cell functions but also the development of suitable scaffold materials that can improve cell adhesion, growth and proliferation. Several physicochemical and biological requirements have to be fulfilled by the scaffold, depending on the particular application under consideration. Specifically, for orthopedic applications, scaffolds should have the following characteristics: (i) biocompatible and bioresorbable with a controllable degradation and resorption rate to match cell/tissue growth in vitro and/or in vivo; (ii) suitable surface chemistry and roughness for cell attachment, proliferation and differentiation; and (iii) bioactivity and osteoconductivity to facilitate the migration of osteoblasts from surrounding bone into the implant site and hence assist in the healing process [1-3]. To satisfy these demanding criteria, investigators have been studying a wide variety of natural and synthetic biomaterials, like polymers and ceramics, for the design and construction of scaffolds for orthopedic tissue engineering. These include naturally occurring polymers (e.g., hydrogels like gelatin, fi
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