Highly Bioactive Elastomeric Hybrid Nanoceramics for Guiding Bone Tissue Regeneration

Conventional bioactive ceramic implants possess high osteogenic ability but exhibit poor machinability and brittleness, which limit their wide applications. In this study, we report an elastomeric machinable bioactive nanoceramic-based hybrid membrane that is formed by nanohydroxyapatite-reinforced hybrid matrix (poly(dimethylsilicone)-bioactive glass-poly(caprolactone) (nHA-PBP)) using a modified sol-gel process. The hybrid matrix is composed of elastomeric polydimethylsiloxane and bioactive glass nanogel. The effect of the nHA contents (0, 20, 30, 40 and 50 wt%) on the physicochemical structure and biomineralization activity of PBP hybrid membranes is investigated systematically. The results show that nHA-PBP hybrid membranes containing more than 20 wt% nHA exhibit the highest apatite-forming bioactivity due to the optimized hydroxyapatite crystalline phase. NHA-PBP implants with nHA also show good elastomeric mechanical behavior and foldable mechanical properties. Furthermore, the study of the in vitro cellular biocompatibility suggests that the nHA-PBP hybrid monoliths can enhance osteoblast (MC3T3-E1) attachment and proliferation. The biomimetic hybrid composition, crack-free monolith structure, and high biological activity of apatite formation make the nHA-PBP hybrid membrane a prospective candidate in the application of bone tissue regeneration.