Cobalt-Releasing 1393 Bioactive Glass-Derived Scaffolds for Bone Tissue Engineering Applications

Loading biomaterials with angiogenic therapeutics has emerged as a promising approach for developing superior biomaterials for engineering bone constructs. In this context, cobalt-releasing materials are of interest as Co is a known angiogenic agent. In this study, we report on cobalt-releasing three-dimensional (3D) scaffolds based on a silicate bioactive glass. Novel melt-derived “1393” glass (53 wt % SiO2, 6 wt % Na2O, 12 wt % K2O, 5 wt % MgO, 20 wt % CaO, and 4 wt % P2O5) with CoO substituted for CaO was fabricated and was used to produce a 3D porous scaffold by the foam replica technique. Glass structural and thermal properties as well as scaffold macrostructure, compressive strength, acellular bioactivity, and Co release in simulated body fluid (SBF) were investigated. In particular, detailed insights into the physicochemical reactions occurring at the scaffold–fluid interface were derived from advanced micro-particle-induced X-ray emission/Rutherford backscattering spectrometry analysis. CoO is shown to act in a concentration-dependent manner as both a network former and a network modifier. At a concentration of 5 wt % CoO, the glass transition point (Tg) of the glass was reduced because of the replacement of stronger Si–O bonds with Co–O bonds in the glass network. Compressive strengths of >2 MPa were measured for Co-containing 1393-derived scaffolds, which are comparable to values of human spongy bone. SBF studies showed that all glass scaffolds form a calcium phosphate (CaP) layer, and for 1393-1Co and 1393-5Co, CaP layers with incorporated traces of Co were observed. The highest Co concentrations of ∼12 ppm were released in SBF after reaction for 21 days, which are known to be within therapeutic ranges reported for Co2+ ions.