Antibacterial alginate/nano-hydroxyapatite composites for bone tissue engineering: Assessment of their bioactivity, biocompatibility, and antibacterial activity

Bone substitute materials based on bioceramics and polymers have evolved shifting from a passive role where they are merely accepted by the body; to an active role, where they respond to particular environmental conditions or to different types of cues generating suitable integration (osseointegration for this case) inside the host tissue. In this work, two types of composite materials based on a bioceramic (synthetic nano-hydroxyapatite, HA) and a biopolymer (sodium alginate, ALG) have been designed and assessed for promoting the bone regeneration. These materials were loaded with ciprofloxacin (CIP) for obtaining, not only a suitable material for a filling but with antibacterial properties. Therefore, their main features were studied through Fourier transformed-infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), X-ray diffraction (XRD) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). Ultraviolet–Visible (UV–Vis) spectroscopy was used for obtaining the released concentrations of CIP and Zeta-potential (ζ-potential) was used for characterizing the adsorption of CIP onto nanoparticles. The release profile of this drug has been fit with the Ritger-Peppas model, used for studying the release kinetics of hydrogel-based systems. The bioactivity of these composites was also evaluated after 30 days of incubation in a simulated body fluid solution (SBF). Then, the assessment of antibacterial capability against the three main strains cause osteomyelitis was performed. Finally, the cell viability study and the cellular morphology assay were also carried out. These last assays have shown encouraging results and, gathered with their other properties, such as their bioactivity and antibacterial properties; they could lead to propose these materials as new bone filler antibiotic devices.