Bioactive glasses and glass-ceramics exhibit osteoconductivity, which is the ability to form a direct bond with living bone tissue. This property is typically assessed by observing the formation of a hydroxyapatite layer using simulated body fluid (SBF), a solution designed to mimic the inorganic constituents of human blood plasma. SBF was developed by Kokubo (T.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBioresponsive ceramics, a new concept in ceramic biomaterials, respond to biological molecules or environments, as exemplified by salts composed of calcium ions and phosphate esters (SCPEs). SCPEs have been shown to form apatite in simulated body fluid (SBF) containing alkaline phosphatase (ALP). Thus, surface modification with SCPEs is expected to improve the apatite-forming ability of a material.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBlock copolymer-mediated self-assembly of colloidal nanoparticles has attracted great attention for fabricating various nanoparticle arrays. We have previously shown that silica nanoparticles (SNPs) assemble into ring-like nanostructures in the presence of temperature-responsive block copolymers poly[(2-ethoxyethyl vinyl ether)--(2-methoxyethyl vinyl ether)] (PEOVE-PMOVE) in an aqueous phase. The ring-like nanostructures formed within an aggregate of PEOVE-PMOVE when the temperature was increased to 45 °C, at which the polymer is amphiphilic.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFStrategic materials design is essential for the development of small-diameter, tissue-engineered vascular grafts. Self-assembled nanofibers of elastin-like polypeptides represent promising vascular graft components as they replicate the organized elastin structure of native blood vessels. Further, the bioactivity of nanofibers can be modified by the addition of functional peptide motifs.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFCeramic biomaterials have been used for the treatment of bone defects and have stimulated intense research on such materials. We have previously reported that a salt composed of calcium ions and a phosphate ester (SCPE) transformed into hydroxyapatite (HAp) in a simulated body fluid (SBF) modified with alkaline phosphatase (ALP), and proposed SCPEs as a new category of ceramic biomaterials, namely bioresponsive ceramics. However, the factors that affect the transformation of SCPEs to HAp in the SBF remained unclear.
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