The success of biomaterials for bone regeneration relies on many factors, among which osseointegration plays a key role. Biogran (BG) is a bioactive glass commonly employed as a bone graft in dental procedures. Despite its use in clinical practice, the capability of BG to promote osseointegration has never been resolved at the nanoscale. In this paper, we present the workflow for characterizing the interface between newly formed bone and BG in a preclinical rat model. Areas of bone–BG contact were first identified by backscattered electron imaging in a scanning electron microscope. A focused ion beam in situ lift-out protocol was employed to prepare ultrathin samples for transmission electron microscopy analysis. The bone–BG gradual interface, i.e. the biointerphase, was visualized at the nanoscale with unprecedented resolution thanks to scanning transmission electron microscopy. Finally, we present a method to view the bone–BG interface in three dimensions using electron tomography.

用于骨再生的生物材料的成功依赖于许多因素，其中骨整合起着关键作用。Biogran (BG) 是一种生物活性玻璃，通常用作牙科手术中的骨移植物。尽管 BG 在临床实践中得到应用，但 BG 促进骨整合的能力从未在纳米尺度上得到解决。在本文中，我们介绍了在临床前大鼠模型中表征新形成的骨和 BG 之间界面的工作流程。骨-BG 接触区域首先通过扫描电子显微镜中的背散射电子成像来识别。原位聚焦离子束采用提升协议制备用于透射电子显微镜分析的超薄样品。由于扫描透射电子显微镜，骨骼-BG 渐变界面，即生物界面，在纳米尺度上以前所未有的分辨率可视化。最后，我们提出了一种使用电子断层扫描在三个维度上查看骨骼-BG 界面的方法。