In vitro assessment of degradation and mineralisation of V2O5 substituted borate bioactive glass scaffolds

Abstract

Bioactive glasses are promising scaffold materials for bone regeneration because of their unique ability to convert to hydroxyapatite (HA) in vivo, and their ability to bond with bone and soft tissues. In this study, borate based (13-93B3) bioactive glass powders containing up to 3 wt-%V2O5 were prepared by the melt quench technique. Vanadium was chosen because of its therapeutic action. It is known to promote initial wound healing and this may be especially beneficial to applications involving diabetic patients and soft tissue healing. Bioactive glass scaffolds were fabricated using the polymer foam replication method. In vitro degradation and bioactivity of the scaffolds were evaluated in simulated body fluid under static conditions. Results revealed that the vanadium-containing borate glasses have higher degradation rates compared to the bare borate glass 13-93B3. Due to low chemical durability, substituted glasses exhibited a good in vitro bioactive response. Taking into account the high in vitro HA forming ability, borate glass scaffolds containing V+5 therapeutic ions are promising candidates for bone tissue engineering applications.