Essential Oils for Bone Repair and Regeneration—Mechanisms and Applications

Abstract

Although bone possesses a remarkable capacity for self-remodeling and self-healing of small defects, the continuously increasing growth of bone diseases in the elderly population is becoming a significant burden, affecting individual life quality and society. Conventional treatment options involve surgical procedures for repair and reconstruction, local debridement, autografts or allografts, bone transport, Masquelet’s two-stage reconstructions, and vascularized bone transplants. However, as such approaches often lead to disruptions of bone-regeneration processes and microbial contaminations and are often inefficient, researchers focus on developing bone-regenerative strategies and identifying novel therapeutic agents that could aid the bone-healing process. In this regard, plant-derived biocompounds, especially essential oils (EOs), have received great scientific attention in recent years, owing to their antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and antimicrobial effects. Current studies focus on either the direct application of EOs on bone tissue or the introduction of EOs as bioactive compounds in bone scaffolds or as coatings for bone implants. Some of the EOs investigated involve St. John’s wort, rosemary, thyme, ylang, white poplar, eucalyptus, lavender, and grape seed. In this context, the present paper aims to provide an overview of the main mechanisms involved in bone repair and regeneration and the potential of EOs to address and enhance these mechanisms.

The Antimicrobial and Antibiofilm In Vitro Activity of Liquid and Vapour Phases of Selected Essential Oils against Staphylococcus aureus

“…In turn, 1,8-cineole, a compound found in rosemary and eucalyptus oils, has been reported to act synergistically with amoxicillin and gentamicin in combating MRSA-induced osteomyelitis in rabbits [ 13 ]. It should also be noted that such commonly used EOs as St. John’s wort, cinnamon, thyme, rosemary, white poplar, ginger, and notopterygium root, have a beneficial impact on bone features, including mineral turnover normalization, inhibition of bone loss, enhancement of plasma calcium and vitamin D3 level, bone mineral-density improvement, and drop of inflammation and oxidative stress level [ 14 ]. Moreover, ylang-ylang, rosemary, eucalyptus, frankincense, tea tree, and wintergreen EOs are able to improve biocompatibility and bone regeneration ability and to prevent microbial colonization [ 14 ].…”

“…It should also be noted that such commonly used EOs as St. John’s wort, cinnamon, thyme, rosemary, white poplar, ginger, and notopterygium root, have a beneficial impact on bone features, including mineral turnover normalization, inhibition of bone loss, enhancement of plasma calcium and vitamin D3 level, bone mineral-density improvement, and drop of inflammation and oxidative stress level [ 14 ]. Moreover, ylang-ylang, rosemary, eucalyptus, frankincense, tea tree, and wintergreen EOs are able to improve biocompatibility and bone regeneration ability and to prevent microbial colonization [ 14 ]. Since EOs are extensively metabolized in the human organism, their bioavailability as a potential systemic agent is limited [ 15 ].…”

Iron Oxide–Silica Core–Shell Nanoparticles Functionalized with Essential Oils for Antimicrobial Therapies

“…Increasing scientific interest has focused on EOs, which are secondary plant metabolites consisting of complex mixtures of odoriferous and volatile organic components produced by different plant parts, including flowers, peels, seeds, leaves, buds, twigs, roots, or fruits [ 19 , 20 , 21 , 22 ]. Since early times, EOs have been widely used in numerous medical applications, including cosmetics, dermatology, aromatherapy, and self-care medical products, or for food preservation purposes [ 19 , 21 ].…”

“…Currently, they are widely found in commercial applications, such as medicines, and there are many clinical trials performed [ 23 ]. There are many research studies demonstrating their biological benefits, including antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, anti-cancer, antimicrobial (antibacterial, antiviral, antifungal, and antiparasitic), analgesic, sedative, and wound healing [ 19 , 20 , 21 ]. With regard to the current antimicrobial resistance crisis, EOs have proven their efficiency by targeting microbial cell walls or membranes, cellular respiration processes, or quorum sensing mechanisms [ 19 , 24 ].…”

Craniofacial Bone Tissue Engineering: Current Approaches and Potential Therapy

“…Several steps are necessary to repair critical-size bone defects successfully. The desired implanted scaffold should meet the following criteria: (1) Deliver and/or recruit naïve cells into the defect site [ 23 , 129 , 130 , 131 , 132 ]; (2) incorporate growth factors into biomaterial scaffolds [ 133 , 134 , 135 ]; (3) allow vascularization and new bone tissue formation [ 136 , 137 , 138 ]; (4) facilitate exchange of nutrient and oxygen in vivo [ 133 , 136 , 137 , 139 ]; (5) stand a high structural load-bearing capacity [ 135 , 136 , 137 , 140 ]; and (6) ability to support and balance new bone tissue formation and scaffold degradation [ 133 , 134 , 135 , 136 , 140 , 141 ]. These requirements appear to be critical for effective craniofacial bone regeneration [ 23 , 135 , 142 , 143 ].…”