Additive manufacturing of 3D porous alkali-free bioactive glass scaffolds for healthcare applications

This work deals with the fabrication by robocasting of 3D porous scaffolds of an alkali-free bioactive glass composition, FastOs®BG, belonging to the diopside (CaMgSi2O6)–fluorapatite (Ca5(PO4)3F)–tricalcium phosphate (Ca3(PO4)2) system. A glass frit prepared by melt quenching was grinded by dry and wet milling up to getting a suitable combination of particle sizes. The milled frit was then dispersed in aqueous media with the addition of a polycarbonate dispersant, hydroxypropyl methylcellulose (HPMC) as binder and Aristoflex® TAC as gelation agent. The effects of the type and amounts of the processing additives and particle size distribution on the rheological properties of the extrudable pastes were investigated. Printable inks containing 47 vol.% solids with rheological properties tuned to meet the stringent requirements of robocasting technique were obtained. Scaffolds with totally interconnected 3D pore networks and different pore sizes (200, 300 and 500 µm) could be easily fabricated and sintered. The excellent processing and sintering ability resulted in compressive strength values comparable to that of cancellous bone essential for 3D porous scaffolds intended for bone regeneration and tissue engineering applications.

[1]  Aldo R Boccaccini,et al.  45S5 Bioglass-derived glass-ceramic scaffolds for bone tissue engineering. , 2006, Biomaterials.

[2]  Larry L. Hench,et al.  Crystallization kinetics of tape cast bioactive glass 45S5 , 2003 .

[3]  L. Fiette,et al.  Nanoporous hydroxyapatite/sodium titanate bilayer on titanium implants for improved osteointegration. , 2017, Dental materials : official publication of the Academy of Dental Materials.

[4]  Xing‐dong Zhang,et al.  An improved polymeric sponge replication method for biomedical porous titanium scaffolds. , 2017, Materials science & engineering. C, Materials for biological applications.

[5]  A. Berdal,et al.  Potential of biomimetic surfaces to promote in vitro osteoblast-like cell differentiation. , 2004, Biomaterials.

[6]  Cato T Laurencin,et al.  Bone tissue engineering: recent advances and challenges. , 2012, Critical reviews in biomedical engineering.

[7]  M Vogel,et al.  In vivo comparison of bioactive glass particles in rabbits. , 2001, Biomaterials.

[8]  Julian R Jones,et al.  Optimising bioactive glass scaffolds for bone tissue engineering. , 2006, Biomaterials.

[9]  W. Tseng,et al.  Sedimentation, rheology and particle-packing structure of aqueous Al2O3 suspensions , 2003 .

[10]  Hyoun‐Ee Kim,et al.  Production of highly porous triphasic calcium phosphate scaffolds with excellent in vitro bioactivity using vacuum-assisted foaming of ceramic suspension (VFC) technique , 2013 .

[11]  M. Pascual,et al.  Alkali-free bioactive diopside–tricalcium phosphate glass-ceramics for scaffold fabrication: Sintering and crystallization behaviours , 2016 .

[12]  A. Sola,et al.  An Overview of The Effects of Thermal Processing on Bioactive Glasses , 2010 .

[13]  R. Boughton,et al.  Biopolymer/Calcium Phosphate Scaffolds for Bone Tissue Engineering , 2014, Advanced healthcare materials.

[14]  Julian R Jones,et al.  Review of bioactive glass: from Hench to hybrids. , 2013, Acta biomaterialia.

[15]  N. Wagner,et al.  Colloidal Suspension Rheology: Frontmatter , 2011 .

[16]  Scott F. Gilbert,et al.  Developmental Biology, 6th edition , 2000 .

[17]  L L Hench,et al.  In vitro dissolution of melt-derived 45S5 and sol-gel derived 58S bioactive glasses. , 2002, Journal of biomedical materials research.

[18]  Jincheng Du,et al.  Understanding the composition-structure-bioactivity relationships in diopside (CaO·MgO·2SiO₂)-tricalcium phosphate (3CaO·P₂O₅) glass system. , 2015, Acta biomaterialia.

[19]  J. San Román,et al.  Poly(ester‐urethane) scaffolds: effect of structure on properties and osteogenic activity of stem cells , 2015, Journal of tissue engineering and regenerative medicine.

[20]  A. C. Richardson,et al.  Bone grafting and guided bone regeneration for immediate dental implants in humans. , 1994, Journal of periodontology.

[21]  Gurbinder Kaur,et al.  A review of bioactive glasses: Their structure, properties, fabrication and apatite formation. , 2014, Journal of biomedical materials research. Part A.

[22]  A. D. Bankoff,et al.  Biomechanical Characteristics of the Bone , 2012 .

[23]  M. Bohner,et al.  Silicon-substituted calcium phosphates - a critical view. , 2009, Biomaterials.

[24]  V. Krishnan,et al.  Bioglass: A novel biocompatible innovation , 2013, Journal of advanced pharmaceutical technology & research.

[25]  J. Ferreira,et al.  Influence of Characteristics of the Starting Hydroxyapatite Powders and of Deagglomeration Procedure, on Rheological Behaviour of HA Suspensions , 2004 .

[26]  F. O'Brien.  Biomaterials & scaffolds for tissue engineering , 2011 .

[27]  J. Ferreira,et al.  Influence of particle size distribution on rheology and particle packing of silica-based suspensions , 2004 .

[28]  F. O'Brien,et al.  Development of a collagen calcium-phosphate scaffold as a novel bone graft substitute. , 2008, Studies in health technology and informatics.

[29]  P. Giannoudis,et al.  Do Nonsteroidal Anti-Inflammatory Drugs Affect Bone Healing? A Critical Analysis , 2012, TheScientificWorldJournal.

[30]  A. Afonso,et al.  The in vivo performance of an alkali-free bioactive glass for bone grafting, FastOs® BG, assessed with an ovine model. , 2017, Journal of biomedical materials research. Part B, Applied biomaterials.

[31]  J. Kohn,et al.  CHAPTER 22 – BIODEGRADABLE POLYMERS , 2000 .

[32]  J. J. Mecholsky,et al.  Bioactivity of tape cast and sintered bioactive glass-ceramic in simulated body fluid. , 2002, Biomaterials.

[33]  José M.F. Ferreira,et al.  Biphasic calcium phosphate scaffolds fabricated by direct write assembly: Mechanical, anti-microbial and osteoblastic properties , 2017 .

[34]  Cleo Choong,et al.  Three-dimensional scaffolds for tissue engineering applications: role of porosity and pore size. , 2013, Tissue engineering. Part B, Reviews.

[35]  Brian Derby,et al.  Mechanical properties of porous ceramic scaffolds: Influence of internal dimensions , 2015 .

[36]  Pedro Miranda,et al.  Effect of milling media on processing and performance of 13-93 bioactive glass scaffolds fabricated by robocasting , 2015 .

[37]  Michael Weyand,et al.  First successful implantation of a biodegradable metal stent into the left pulmonary artery of a preterm baby , 2005, Catheterization and cardiovascular interventions : official journal of the Society for Cardiac Angiography & Interventions.

[38]  Eduardo Saiz,et al.  Direct ink writing of highly porous and strong glass scaffolds for load-bearing bone defects repair and regeneration. , 2011, Acta biomaterialia.

[39]  M. Pascual,et al.  Diopside (CaO·MgO·2SiO2)–fluorapatite (9CaO·3P2O5·CaF2) glass-ceramics: potential materials for bone tissue engineering , 2011 .

[40]  S. Stanzl-Tschegg,et al.  Bone-implant degradation and mechanical response of bone surrounding Mg-alloy implants. , 2017, Journal of the mechanical behavior of biomedical materials.

[41]  E. Saiz,et al.  Direct write assembly of calcium phosphate scaffolds using a water-based hydrogel. , 2010, Acta biomaterialia.

[42]  Larry L. Hench,et al.  Bioceramics: From Concept to Clinic , 1991 .

[43]  R. Schülke.  [Anatomy and physiology]. , 1968, Zahntechnik; Zeitschrift fur Theorie und Praxis der wissenschaftlichen Zahntechnik.

[44]  Antonio Tilocca,et al.  Role of glass structure in defining the chemical dissolution behavior, bioactivity and antioxidant properties of zinc and strontium co-doped alkali-free phosphosilicate glasses. , 2014, Acta biomaterialia.

[45]  J. Ferreira,et al.  Structure, biodegradation behavior and cytotoxicity of alkali-containing alkaline-earth phosphosilicate glasses. , 2014, Materials science & engineering. C, Materials for biological applications.

[46]  Rozalia Dimitriou,et al.  Bone regeneration: current concepts and future directions , 2011, BMC medicine.

[47]  E. Pérez,et al.  On the computational modeling of the viscosity of colloidal dispersions and its relation with basic molecular interactions , 2015, 1506.06202.

[48]  A. Carr,et al.  The sintering and mechanical behavior of hydroxyapatite with bioglass additions , 2001, Journal of materials science. Materials in medicine.

[49]  Eduardo Saiz,et al.  Bioactive glass scaffolds for bone tissue engineering: state of the art and future perspectives. , 2011, Materials science & engineering. C, Materials for biological applications.

[50]  L. Wolpert.  Developmental Biology , 1968, Nature.

[51]  S. Tsutsumi,et al.  Study of diopside ceramics for biomaterials , 1999, Journal of materials science. Materials in medicine.

[52]  L L Hench,et al.  Effect of crystallization on apatite-layer formation of bioactive glass 45S5. , 1996, Journal of biomedical materials research.

[53]  E. W. Llewellin,et al.  The rheology of suspensions of solid particles , 2010, Proceedings of the Royal Society A: Mathematical, Physical and Engineering Sciences.

[54]  John N. Stuecker,et al.  Control of the viscous behavior of highly concentrated mullite suspensions for robocasting , 2003 .

[55]  José M.F. Ferreira,et al.  A simple recipe for direct writing complex 45S5 Bioglass® 3D scaffolds , 2013 .

[56]  T Kitsugi,et al.  Solutions able to reproduce in vivo surface-structure changes in bioactive glass-ceramic A-W. , 1990, Journal of biomedical materials research.

[57]  José M.F. Ferreira,et al.  Alkali-free bioactive glasses for bone tissue engineering: a preliminary investigation. , 2012, Acta biomaterialia.

[58]  Malika Ammam.  Electrophoretic deposition under modulated electric fields: a review , 2012 .

[59]  V. Barão,et al.  Is there scientific evidence favoring the substitution of commercially pure titanium with titanium alloys for the manufacture of dental implants? , 2017, Materials science & engineering. C, Materials for biological applications.

[60]  Yi-Xian Qin,et al.  Dehydration and Rehydration Alter Elastic and Viscoelastic Nanomechanical Properties of Cortical and Trabecular Bone , 2010 .

[61]  Eduardo Saiz,et al.  Mechanical properties of calcium phosphate scaffolds fabricated by robocasting. , 2008, Journal of biomedical materials research. Part A.

[62]  C. Yip,et al.  Carboxymethyl cellulose binding to mineral substrates: characterization by atomic force microscopy-based force spectroscopy and quartz-crystal microbalance with dissipation monitoring. , 2013, Journal of colloid and interface science.

[63]  Larry L. Hench,et al.  Bioglass ®45S5 Stimulates Osteoblast Turnover and Enhances Bone Formation In Vitro: Implications and Applications for Bone Tissue Engineering , 2000, Calcified Tissue International.

[64]  José M.F. Ferreira,et al.  Robocasting of 45S5 bioactive glass scaffolds for bone tissue engineering , 2014 .

[65]  Eduardo Saiz,et al.  Sintering and robocasting of beta-tricalcium phosphate scaffolds for orthopaedic applications. , 2005, Acta biomaterialia.

[66]  W. Weibull.  A Statistical Distribution Function of Wide Applicability , 1951 .

[67]  O. Böstman,et al.  BIODEGRADABLE IMPLANTS IN FRACTURE FIXATION: EARLY RESULTS OF TREATMENT OF FRACTURES OF THE ANKLE , 1985, The Lancet.

[68]  K. Leong,et al.  Scaffolding in tissue engineering: general approaches and tissue-specific considerations , 2008, European Spine Journal.

[69]  J. Lewis,et al.  Concentrated hydroxyapatite inks for direct-write assembly of 3-D periodic scaffolds. , 2005, Biomaterials.

[70]  J. Polak,et al.  Ionic products of bioactive glass dissolution increase proliferation of human osteoblasts and induce insulin-like growth factor II mRNA expression and protein synthesis. , 2000, Biochemical and biophysical research communications.

[71]  Robert M. Nerem,et al.  CHAPTER 2 – THE CHALLENGE OF IMITATING NATURE , 2000 .

[72]  The Encyclopædia Britannica , 1902, Nature.