Nanotube-decorated hierarchical tantalum scaffold promoted early osseointegration

doi:10.1016/j.nano.2021.102390

Nanomedicine: Nanotechnology, Biology and Medicine

Volume 35, July 2021, 102390

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.nano.2021.102390 Get rights and content

Abstract

This study aimed to fabricate a hierarchical tantalum scaffold mimicking natural bone structure to enhance osseointegration. Porous tantalum scaffolds (p-Ta) with microgradients were fabricated by selective laser melting according to a computer-aided design model. Electrochemical anodization produced nanotubes on the p-Ta surface (p-Ta-nt). SEM verified the construction of a unique nanostructure on p-Ta-nt. Contact angle and protein adsorption measurements demonstrated that p-Ta-nt have enhanced hydrophilicity and protein absorption. MC3T3-E1 preosteoblasts showed increased filamentous pseudopods and comparable cell proliferation when cultured on p-Ta-nt. Osteogenic marker gene (Osterix, Runx2, COL-I) transcription was significantly upregulated in MC3T3-E1 cells cultured on p-Ta-nt after 7 days. After implantation into the femurs of New Zealand white rabbits for 2 weeks, histological examination found improved early osseointegration in the p-Ta-nt group. This study showed that a hierarchical tantalum structure could enhance early osteogenic effects in vitro and in vivo.

Graphical abstract

Schematic representation of the hierarchical tantalum scaffold mimicking natural bone structure. Porous tantalum scaffolds (p-Ta) were fabricated by selective laser melting. The nanotubes on the p-Ta surface (p-Ta-nt) were produced by electrochemical anodization. In vitro studies showed the satisfactory biocompatibility and osteoinduction to MC3T3-E1 cells. In vivo study showed the p-Ta-nt scaffold enhanced early osseointegration in a rabbit femur implant model.

Section snippets

Fabrication of porous tantalum scaffolds

A 3D printing system – FARSOON 21M Metal laser melting system (FARSOON Technology, China) – was used to manufacture porous scaffolds out of pure tantalum by Additive Printing LTD (Zhuzhou, China) according to a CAD model. The detailed manufacturing process referred to Han Wang's experiment.²⁹ The CAD models were designed in Mimics and 3-Matic software (Materialise, Leuven, Belgium). A commonly used diamond crystal lattice³⁰ with a 300 μm trabecular thickness was chosen as the unit cell (Figure 2

Sample fabrication and characterization

The surface morphologies of bare porous tantalum (p-Ta) and nanotube-modified porous tantalum (p-Ta-nt) were characterized under macroscopic optical view and FE-SEM. Macroscopically, there was no significant difference in the regularly ordered trabecular structure of the Ta samples before and after modification, but the p-Ta-nt lost its metallic luster and became darker due to the presence of Ta₂O₅ nanotubes. (Figure 2, A.c and d).

As shown in Figure 2, B, the surface microstructures of the Ta

Discussion

Tantalum has been increasingly studied for its potential in bone restoration but is limited by the poor bioinertia of its surface, which leads to poor early osseointegration; furthermore, there are few solutions regarding this problem. In our study, we activated a tantalum scaffold with a porous structure fabricated by 3D printing and decorated with nanotubes by electrochemical anodization and observed an increase in osteogenesis both in vitro and in vivo.

Mimicking natural bone is a crucial

Conclusion

In summary, a hierarchical trabecular-like scaffold (p-Ta-nt) was successfully constructed based on a 3D-printed porous tantalum structure modified by tantalum nanotubes. The p-Ta-nt scaffold exhibited outstanding hydrophilicity and protein absorption, great biocompatibility and excellent osteogenic promotion. In vitro studies showed satisfactory biocompatibility and osteoinduction with MC3T3-E1 cells. This p-Ta-nt scaffold also showed enhanced early osseointegration in a rabbit femur implant

Credit Author Statement

Zhiyi Zhang: Methodology, Software, Investigation, Writing - original draft; Yuzhou Li: Writing - review & editing, Project administration; Ping He: Formal analysis, Visualization; Fengyi Liu: Resources, Data curation; Lingjie Li: Validation, Data Curation; He Zhang: Conceptualization, Validation; Ping Ji: Supervision, Project administration; Sheng Yang: Conceptualization, Funding acquisition.

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Citation Excerpt :
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Funding

This work was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant No. 81500894, 81901057); the Basic Research and Frontier Exploration Grant of Chongqing Science and Technology Commission (Natural Science Foundation of Chongqing, Grant No. cstc2019jcyj-msxmX0366); the Scientific and Technological Research Program of Chongqing Municipal Education Commission (Grant No. KJQN201900441); the Major Program of Chongqing Yuzhong District (Grant No. 20190103); Yubei District Science Project [2018GY11]; and the Chongqing Postgraduate Tutor Team Construction Project (Grant No. dstd201806).

Conflict of interest

The authors declare no potential conflicts of interest with respect to the authorship and/or publication of this article.

View full text

Original ArticleNanotube-decorated hierarchical tantalum scaffold promoted early osseointegration

Abstract

Graphical abstract

Section snippets

Fabrication of porous tantalum scaffolds

Sample fabrication and characterization

Discussion

Conclusion

Credit Author Statement

Drug Discov Today

Injury

Acta Biomater

J Alloys Compd

Appl Mater Today

Colloids Surf B: Biointerfaces

Ceram Int

Bone

Nanomedicine

J Mech Behav Biomed Mater

Acta Biomater

Korean J Couns Psychother

Colloids Surf B: Biointerfaces

Mater Sci Eng C

Trends Biotechnol

Mater Sci Eng C

Biotechnol Adv

Acta Biomater

Biomaterials

Biomaterials

J Colloid Interface Sci

Water Res

Dopamine-melanin nanoparticles scavenge reactive oxygen and nitrogen species and activate autophagy for osteoarthritis therapy

Nanoscale

Hydrogel delivery of lysostaphin eliminates orthopedic implant infection by Staphylococcus aureus and supports fracture healing

Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A

Tantalum based materials for implants and prostheses applications

Additively manufactured Tantalum implants for repairing bone defects: a systematic review[J]

Tissue Engineering Part B: Reviews

Mesenchymal stem cell-loaded porous tantalum integrated with biomimetic 3D collagen-based scaffold to repair large osteochondral defects in goats

Stem Cell Res Ther

Original Article
Nanotube-decorated hierarchical tantalum scaffold promoted early osseointegration