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Putra NE, Leeflang MA, Klimopoulou M, Dong J, Taheri P, Huan Z, Fratila-Apachitei LE, Mol JMC, Chang J, Zhou J, Zadpoor AA. Extrusion-based 3D printing of biodegradable, osteogenic, paramagnetic, and porous FeMn-akermanite bone substitutes. Acta Biomater 2023; 162:182-198. [PMID: 36972809 DOI: 10.1016/j.actbio.2023.03.033] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/30/2023] [Revised: 03/13/2023] [Accepted: 03/21/2023] [Indexed: 03/29/2023]
Abstract
The development of biodegradable Fe-based bone implants has rapidly progressed in recent years. Most of the challenges encountered in developing such implants have been tackled individually or in combination using additive manufacturing technologies. Yet not all the challenges have been overcome. Herein, we present porous FeMn-akermanite composite scaffolds fabricated by extrusion-based 3D printing to address the unmet clinical needs associated with Fe-based biomaterials for bone regeneration, including low biodegradation rate, MRI-incompatibility, mechanical properties, and limited bioactivity. In this research, we developed inks containing Fe, 35 wt% Mn, and 20 or 30 vol% akermanite powder mixtures. 3D printing was optimized together with the debinding and sintering steps to obtain scaffolds with interconnected porosity of 69%. The Fe-matrix in the composites contained the γ-FeMn phase as well as nesosilicate phases. The former made the composites paramagnetic and, thus, MRI-friendly. The in vitro biodegradation rates of the composites with 20 and 30 vol% akermanite were respectively 0.24 and 0.27 mm/y, falling within the ideal range of biodegradation rates for bone substitution. The yield strengths of the porous composites stayed within the range of the values of the trabecular bone, despite in vitro biodegradation for 28 d. All the composite scaffolds favored the adhesion, proliferation, and osteogenic differentiation of preosteoblasts, as revealed by Runx2 assay. Moreover, osteopontin was detected in the extracellular matrix of cells on the scaffolds. Altogether, these results demonstrate the remarkable potential of these composites in fulfilling the requirements of porous biodegradable bone substitutes, motivating future in vivo research. STATEMENT OF SIGNIFICANCE: We developed FeMn-akermanite composite scaffolds by taking advantage of the multi-material capacity of extrusion-based 3D printing. Our results demonstrated that the FeMn-akermanite scaffolds showed an exceptional performance in fulfilling all the requirements for bone substitution in vitro, i.e., a sufficient biodegradation rate, having mechanical properties in the range of trabecular bone even after 4 weeks biodegradation, paramagnetic, cytocompatible and most importantly osteogenic. Our results encourage further research on Fe-based bone implants in in vivo.
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Affiliation(s)
- N E Putra
- Department of Biomechanical Engineering, Faculty of Mechanical, Maritime, and Materials Engineering, Delft University of Technology, Mekelweg 2, 2628 CD Delft, The Netherlands.
| | - M A Leeflang
- Department of Biomechanical Engineering, Faculty of Mechanical, Maritime, and Materials Engineering, Delft University of Technology, Mekelweg 2, 2628 CD Delft, The Netherlands.
| | - M Klimopoulou
- Department of Biomechanical Engineering, Faculty of Mechanical, Maritime, and Materials Engineering, Delft University of Technology, Mekelweg 2, 2628 CD Delft, The Netherlands.
| | - J Dong
- Department of Biomechanical Engineering, Faculty of Mechanical, Maritime, and Materials Engineering, Delft University of Technology, Mekelweg 2, 2628 CD Delft, The Netherlands.
| | - P Taheri
- Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Faculty of Mechanical, Maritime, and Materials Engineering, Delft University of Technology, Mekelweg 2, 2628 CD Delft, The Netherlands.
| | - Z Huan
- Shanghai Institute of Ceramics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 1295 Dingxi Road, Shanghai 200050, China.
| | - L E Fratila-Apachitei
- Department of Biomechanical Engineering, Faculty of Mechanical, Maritime, and Materials Engineering, Delft University of Technology, Mekelweg 2, 2628 CD Delft, The Netherlands.
| | - J M C Mol
- Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Faculty of Mechanical, Maritime, and Materials Engineering, Delft University of Technology, Mekelweg 2, 2628 CD Delft, The Netherlands.
| | - J Chang
- Shanghai Institute of Ceramics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 1295 Dingxi Road, Shanghai 200050, China.
| | - J Zhou
- Department of Biomechanical Engineering, Faculty of Mechanical, Maritime, and Materials Engineering, Delft University of Technology, Mekelweg 2, 2628 CD Delft, The Netherlands.
| | - A A Zadpoor
- Department of Biomechanical Engineering, Faculty of Mechanical, Maritime, and Materials Engineering, Delft University of Technology, Mekelweg 2, 2628 CD Delft, The Netherlands.
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Putra NE, Borg KGN, Diaz-Payno PJ, Leeflang MA, Klimopoulou M, Taheri P, Mol JMC, Fratila-Apachitei LE, Huan Z, Chang J, Zhou J, Zadpoor AA. Additive manufacturing of bioactive and biodegradable porous iron-akermanite composites for bone regeneration. Acta Biomater 2022; 148:355-373. [PMID: 35690326 DOI: 10.1016/j.actbio.2022.06.009] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/31/2022] [Revised: 06/01/2022] [Accepted: 06/03/2022] [Indexed: 11/01/2022]
Abstract
Advanced additive manufacturing techniques have been recently used to tackle the two fundamental challenges of biodegradable Fe-based bone-substituting materials, namely low rate of biodegradation and insufficient bioactivity. While additively manufactured porous iron has been somewhat successful in addressing the first challenge, the limited bioactivity of these biomaterials hinder their progress towards clinical application. Herein, we used extrusion-based 3D printing for additive manufacturing of iron-matrix composites containing silicate-based bioceramic particles (akermanite), thereby addressing both of the abovementioned challenges. We developed inks that carried iron and 5, 10, 15, or 20 vol% of akermanite powder mixtures for the 3D printing process and optimized the debinding and sintering steps to produce geometrically-ordered iron-akermanite composites with an open porosity of 69-71%. The composite scaffolds preserved the designed geometry and the original α-Fe and akermanite phases. The in vitro biodegradation rates of the composites were improved as much as 2.6 times the biodegradation rate of geometrically identical pure iron. The yield strengths and elastic moduli of the scaffolds remained within the range of the mechanical properties of the cancellous bone, even after 28 days of biodegradation. The composite scaffolds (10-20 vol% akermanite) demonstrated improved MC3T3-E1 cell adhesion and higher levels of cell proliferation. The cellular secretion of collagen type-1 and the alkaline phosphatase activity on the composite scaffolds (10-20 vol% akermanite) were, respectively higher than and comparable to Ti6Al4V in osteogenic medium. Taken together, these results clearly show the potential of 3D printed porous iron-akermanite composites for further development as promising bone substitutes. STATEMENT OF SIGNIFICANCE: : Porous iron matrix composites containing akermanite particles were produced by means of multi-material additive manufacturing to address the two fundamental challenges associated with biodegradable iron-based biomaterials, namely very low rate of biodegradation and insufficient bioactivity. Our porous iron-akermanite composites exhibited enhanced biodegradability and superior bioactivity compared to porous monolithic iron scaffolds. The murine bone cells proliferated on the composite scaffolds, and secreted the collagen type-1 matrix that stimulated bony-like mineralization. The results show the exceptional potential of the developed porous iron-based composite scaffolds for application as bone substitutes.
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Affiliation(s)
- N E Putra
- Department of Biomechanical Engineering, Faculty of Mechanical, Maritime, and Materials Engineering, Delft University of Technology, Mekelweg 2, 2628 CD Delft, The Netherlands.
| | - K G N Borg
- Department of Biomechanical Engineering, Faculty of Mechanical, Maritime, and Materials Engineering, Delft University of Technology, Mekelweg 2, 2628 CD Delft, The Netherlands
| | - P J Diaz-Payno
- Department of Biomechanical Engineering, Faculty of Mechanical, Maritime, and Materials Engineering, Delft University of Technology, Mekelweg 2, 2628 CD Delft, The Netherlands; Department of Orthopedics and Sports Medicine, Erasmus MC University Medical Center, Rotterdam, 3015GD, Netherlands
| | - M A Leeflang
- Department of Biomechanical Engineering, Faculty of Mechanical, Maritime, and Materials Engineering, Delft University of Technology, Mekelweg 2, 2628 CD Delft, The Netherlands
| | - M Klimopoulou
- Department of Biomechanical Engineering, Faculty of Mechanical, Maritime, and Materials Engineering, Delft University of Technology, Mekelweg 2, 2628 CD Delft, The Netherlands
| | - P Taheri
- Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Faculty of Mechanical, Maritime, and Materials Engineering, Delft University of Technology, Mekelweg 2, 2628 CD Delft, The Netherlands
| | - J M C Mol
- Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Faculty of Mechanical, Maritime, and Materials Engineering, Delft University of Technology, Mekelweg 2, 2628 CD Delft, The Netherlands
| | - L E Fratila-Apachitei
- Department of Biomechanical Engineering, Faculty of Mechanical, Maritime, and Materials Engineering, Delft University of Technology, Mekelweg 2, 2628 CD Delft, The Netherlands
| | - Z Huan
- Shanghai Institute of Ceramics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 1295 Dingxi Road, Shanghai 200050, China
| | - J Chang
- Shanghai Institute of Ceramics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 1295 Dingxi Road, Shanghai 200050, China
| | - J Zhou
- Department of Biomechanical Engineering, Faculty of Mechanical, Maritime, and Materials Engineering, Delft University of Technology, Mekelweg 2, 2628 CD Delft, The Netherlands
| | - A A Zadpoor
- Department of Biomechanical Engineering, Faculty of Mechanical, Maritime, and Materials Engineering, Delft University of Technology, Mekelweg 2, 2628 CD Delft, The Netherlands
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