BIOCOMPATIBILITY STUDY OF A HYDROXYAPATITE-ALUMINA AND SILICON CARBIDE COMPOSITE SCAFFOLD FOR BONE TISSUE ENGINEERING

Received: 12/Jul/2008, Accepted: 14/Oct/2008 Objective: To date, several scaffolds have been fabricated for application in bone tissue repair. However, there remains a need for synthesis of scaffolds with better mechanical properties, which can be applied to defects in weight-bearing bones. We constructed a composite ceramic bioscaffold of hydroxyapatite-alumina and silicon carbide (HA-Al2O3SiC) to take advantage of the mechanical properties of this combination and show that it supports osteoblast-like cell attachment and growth. Materials and Methods: Ceramic composite microporous scaffolds were synthesized using an organic template (commercial polyurethane sponge with an open, interconnected microporosity). Osteoblast-like cells (Saos-2) were then cultured on the scaffold and their growth pattern and viability were compared with those cultured in cell culture-treated flasks. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) was used to assess cell attachment and