A Combination of Biphasic Calcium Phosphate Scaffold with Hyaluronic Acid-Gelatin Hydrogel as a New Tool for Bone Regeneration

A novel bone substitute was fabricated to enhance bone healing by combining ceramic and polymer materials. In this study, Hyaluronic acid (HyA)–Gelatin (Gel) hydrogel was loaded into a biphasic calcium phosphate (BCP) ceramic, and the resulting scaffold, with unique micro- and macroporous orientation, was evaluated for bone regeneration applications. The fabricated scaffold showed high interconnected porosity, with an average compressive strength of 2.8±0.15 MPa, which is usually recommended for cancellous bone substitution. In vitro cytocompatibility studies were conducted using bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells. The HyA-Gel–loaded BCP scaffold resulted in a significant increase in cell proliferation at 3 (p<0.05) and 7 days (p<0.001) and high alkaline phosphatase activities at 14 and 21 days. Furthermore, the in vivo studies showed that the implanted HyA-Gel–loaded BCP scaffold begins to degrade within 3 months after implantation. Histological sections also confirmed a rapid new bone formation and a hi...