Hypothesis The treatment of bone fractures still represents a challenging clinical issue when complications due to impaired bone remodelling (i.e. osteoporosis) or infections occur. These clinical needs still require a radical improvement of the existing therapeutic approach through the design of advanced biomaterials combining the ability to promote bone regeneration with anti-fouling/anti-adhesive properties able to minimise unspecific biomolecules adsorption and bacterial adhesion. Strontium-containing mesoporous bioactive glasses (Sr-MBG), able to exert a pro-osteogenic effect by releasing Sr2+ ions, have been successfully functionalised to provide mixed-charge surface groups with low-fouling abilities. Experiments Sr-MBG have been post-synthesis modified by co-grafting hydrolysable short chain silanes containing amino (aminopropylsilanetriol) and carboxylate (carboxyethylsilanetriol) moieties to achieve a zwitterionic zero-charge surface and then characterised in terms of textural-structural properties, bioactivity, cytotoxicity, pro-osteogenic and low-fouling capabilities. Findings After zwitterionization the in vitro bioactivity is maintained, as well as the ability to release Sr2+ ions capable to induce a mineralization process. Irrespective of their size, Sr-MBG particles did not exhibit any cytotoxicity in pre-osteoblastic MC3T3-E1 up to the concentration of 75 ug/mL. Finally, the zwitterionic Sr-MBGs show a significant reduction of serum protein adhesion with respect to pristine ones. These results open promising future expectations in the design of nanosystems combining pro-osteogenic and anti-adhesive properties.
@article{arxiv.2105.09010,
title = {Strontium-releasing mesoporous bioactive glasses with anti-adhesive zwitterionic surface as advanced biomaterials for bone tissue regeneration},
author = {Carlotta Pontremoli and Isabel Izquierdo-Barba and Giorgia Montalbano and Maria Vallet-Regi and Chiara Vitale-Brovarone and Sonia Fiorilli},
journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:2105.09010},
year = {2021}
}