Osteoconductive Performance of Carbon Nanotube Scaffolds Homogeneously Mineralized by Flow‐Through Electrodeposition

Abstract

The treatment of bone lesions, including fractures, tumor resection and osteoporosis, is a common clinical practice where bone healing and repair are pursued. It is widely accepted that calcium phosphate‐based materials improve integration of biomaterials with surrounding bone tissue and further serve as a template for proper function of bone‐forming cells. Within this context, mineralization on preformed substrates appears as an interesting and successful alternative for mineral surface functionalization. However, mineralization of “true” 3D scaffolds –in which the magnitude of the third dimension is within the same scale as the other two– is by no means a trivial issue because of the difficulty to obtain a homogeneous mineral layer deposited on the entire internal surface of the scaffold. Herein, a “flow‐through” electrodeposition process is applied for mineralization of 3D scaffolds composed of multiwall carbon nanotubes and chitosan. It is demonstrated that, irrespective of the experimental conditions used for electrodeposition (e.g., time, temperature and voltages), the continuous feed of salts provided by the use of a flow‐through configuration is the main issue if one desires to coat the entire internal structure of 3D scaffolds with a homogeneous mineral layer. Finally, mineralized scaffolds not only showed a remarkable biocompatibility when tested with human osteoblast cells, but also enhanced osteoblast terminal differentiation (as early as 7 days in calcifying media).

Development and Characterization of Biomimetic Carbonated Calcium-Deficient Hydroxyapatite Deposited on Carbon Fiber Scaffold

“…CaP coating on the ACC is performed using a sono-electrochemical deposition method [1,15]. The electrolyte consisted of a calcium nitrate tetrahydrate Ca(NO3)2, 4H2O, and ammonium dihydrogenophosphate NH4H2PO4 mixture maintaining a Ca/P ratio of 1.67 with [Ca 2+ ] = 5.10 −3 mol/L.…”

Citrate-Based Biomaterials and Their Applications in Regenerative Engineering

“…Despite the capacity of the human skeletal system to regenerate, more than 2.2 million bone-grafting procedures are performed worldwide annually to treat orthopedic pathological conditions such as fractures, tumor resection, and osteoporosis (80, 81). Bone has become the second-most transplanted tissue with more than $28 billion spent annually in orthopedic-related medical costs, which are projected to increase with the demands of an aging population (82, 83).…”

Effect of doping in carbon nanotubes on the viability of biomimetic chitosan‐carbon nanotubes‐hydroxyapatite scaffolds

“…However, the presence of those substances directly impact the biocompatibility of the scaffold. Recently, grafted carbon nanotubes (CNT) with chitosan have been used to improve the mechanical properties of these composites …”

“…Recently, grafted carbon nanotubes (CNT) with chitosan have been used to improve the mechanical properties of these composites. 25,26 Carbon nanotubes (CNT) 27 possess properties that are exceptional for many potential applications such as in superconductor materials, optical devices, molecular switches, and other areas of biomedicine. 2,6,8,10,19,[28][29][30][31][32] Although high viability of cell exposed to CNT has been reported, 2,6,8,10,19 so far their cytotoxicity remains controversial, mostly in the case of CNT doped or chemically modified.…”