Electron Beam Melting Fabrication of Porous Ti6Al4V Scaffolds: Cytocompatibility and Osteogenesis

Abstract

Titanium-based implants possessing adequately low elasticity modulus and customdesigned structures are urgently demanded in recent years for orthopedic applications. Electron beam melting (EBM) provides an opportunity to fabricated porous titanium scaffolds that meet the as-mentioned requirements, and it further allows for improved bone regeneration and increased contact area at implant-tissue interface. As a novel additive manufacturing (AM) technique, EBM could conveniently produce scaffolds with tunable porosity and shapes and complex structures based on the popular "bottom-up" concept. In the present work, EBM-produced Ti6Al4V cylinders designed with either a small pore size (EBMS, 640 mm) or a large one (EBML, 1200 mm) were characterized in respect of microstructure, permeability and specific surface area, and their cytocompatibility and osteogenic ability were evaluated subsequently in vitro. Both samples EBMS and EBML could support the attachment and proliferation of hMSCs with minimal inflammatory cytokines secretion. The EBMS scaffolds were relatively more compatible with hMSCs than the EBML and they better sustained osteogenesis probably for their larger specific surface area.

Tailored Surface Treatment of 3D Printed Porous Ti6Al4V by Microarc Oxidation for Enhanced Osseointegration via Optimized Bone In-Growth Patterns and Interlocked Bone/Implant Interface

“…After sterilization of the scaffolds using ethylene oxide gas, primary human mesenchymal stem cells (hMSCs, passage 6, Lonza, Walkersville) were cultured and incubated on to the untreated and MAO-treated samples (n=4) as described previously 35 …”

Polydopamine-assisted functionalization of heparin and vancomycin onto microarc-oxidized 3D printed porous Ti6Al4V for improved hemocompatibility, osteogenic and anti-infection potencies

“…After cobalt-60 sterilization, the TS, TS-M, TS-M/P/V samples (n = 4) were seeded with hMSCs (Lonza, Walkersville) as described previously [8]. Generally, the samples were firstly immersed in culture medium for an hour, and then placed in 24-well plates (Ultra Low Cluster Plate, Costar, Corning) before 50 μL culture medium containing 1 × 10 5 cells was added.…”

“…The osteointegration issue can be addressed through tailoring porous macro-architectures and surface properties. A plethora of earlier efforts were centered on optimizing titanium scaffolds' porosity and geometrical structure [8], and this focus was later shifted towards the alteration of their surface topography, landscape and composition to better mimic that of natural boney extracellular matrix (ECM). Through the use of anodization, microarc oxidization (MAO), acid-alkali treatments and electrodeposition [9][10][11], prior researchers have successfully covered the entire surfaces of porous titanium with micro/nano topography and/or bioactive composition, displaying appreciable osteogenic and osteointegration effects [12].…”

Porous γ-TiAl Structures Fabricated by Electron Beam Melting Process

“…Most of these reports dealt with Ti-6Al-4V alloy, a popular bio-implant material [4][5][6], demonstrating that EBM could produce high-quality porous structures. For example, Li et al produced pores as small as 1 mm and struts with a thickness of only 0.5 mm [7].…”