3D Printed Composite Scaffolds of GelMA and Hydroxyapatite Nanopowders Doped with Mg/Zn Ions to Evaluate the Expression of Genes and Proteins of Osteogenic Markers
Rebeca Leu Alexa,
Andreia Cucuruz,
Cristina-Daniela Ghițulică,
Georgeta Voicu,
Liliana-Roxana Stamat (Balahura),
Sorina Dinescu,
George Mihail Vlasceanu,
Horia Iovu,
Andrada Serafim,
Raluca Ianchis,
Lucian-Toma Ciocan,
Marieta Costache
Affiliations
Rebeca Leu Alexa
Advanced Polymer Materials Group, Department of Bioresources and Polymer Science, University POLITEHNICA of Bucharest, 1-7 Gheorghe Polizu street, 011061 Bucharest, Romania
Andreia Cucuruz
Department of Biomaterials and Medical Devices, Faculty of Medical Engineering, University POLITEHNICA of Bucharest, 1-7 Gheorghe Polizu street, 011061 Bucharest, Romania
Cristina-Daniela Ghițulică
Department of Science and Engineering of Oxide Materials and Nanomaterials, Faculty of Applied Chemistry and Materials Science, University POLITEHNICA of Bucharest, 1-7 Gheorghe Polizu street, 011061 Bucharest, Romania
Georgeta Voicu
Department of Science and Engineering of Oxide Materials and Nanomaterials, Faculty of Applied Chemistry and Materials Science, University POLITEHNICA of Bucharest, 1-7 Gheorghe Polizu street, 011061 Bucharest, Romania
Liliana-Roxana Stamat (Balahura)
Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Faculty of Biology, University of Bucharest, Splaiul Independenței, 050095 Bucharest, Romania
Sorina Dinescu
Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Faculty of Biology, University of Bucharest, Splaiul Independenței, 050095 Bucharest, Romania
George Mihail Vlasceanu
Department of Biomaterials and Medical Devices, Faculty of Medical Engineering, University POLITEHNICA of Bucharest, 1-7 Gheorghe Polizu street, 011061 Bucharest, Romania
Horia Iovu
Advanced Polymer Materials Group, Department of Bioresources and Polymer Science, University POLITEHNICA of Bucharest, 1-7 Gheorghe Polizu street, 011061 Bucharest, Romania
Andrada Serafim
Advanced Polymer Materials Group, Department of Bioresources and Polymer Science, University POLITEHNICA of Bucharest, 1-7 Gheorghe Polizu street, 011061 Bucharest, Romania
Raluca Ianchis
National R-D Institute for Chemistry and Petrochemistry ICECHIM—Bucharest, Splaiul Independentei 202, 6th District, 060021 Bucharest, Romania
Lucian-Toma Ciocan
Department of Prosthetics Technology and Dental Materials, “Carol Davila” University of Medicine and Pharmacy, 8 Eroii Sanitari Street, 050474 Bucharest, Romania
Marieta Costache
Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Faculty of Biology, University of Bucharest, Splaiul Independenței, 050095 Bucharest, Romania
As bone diseases and defects are constantly increasing, the improvement of bone regeneration techniques is constantly evolving. The main purpose of this scientific study was to obtain and investigate biomaterials that can be used in tissue engineering. In this respect, nanocomposite inks of GelMA modified with hydroxyapatite (HA) substituted with Mg and Zn were developed. Using a 3D bioprinting technique, scaffolds with varying shapes and dimensions were obtained. The following analyses were used in order to study the nanocomposite materials and scaffolds obtained by the 3D printing technique: Fourier transform infrared spectrometry and X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and micro-computed tomography (Micro-CT). The swelling and dissolvability of each scaffold were also studied. Biological studies, osteopontin (OPN), and osterix (OSX) gene expression evaluations were confirmed at the protein levels, using immunofluorescence coupled with confocal microscopy. These findings suggest the positive effect of magnesium and zinc on the osteogenic differentiation process. OSX fluorescent staining also confirmed the capacity of GelMA-HM5 and GelMA-HZ5 to support osteogenesis, especially of the magnesium enriched scaffold.
