| Project Detail |
One important health issue in Europe, especially with the aging of the population, is bone (tissue) fracture (damage) as a result of high-energy impact or trauma, tumor resection, infection or osteo-degenerative diseases. This problem is currently managed with fixation devices and porous scaffolds made of bio-inert and biocompatible alloys (Ti, Co-Cr, steels). However, the large elastic modulus mismatch between these permanent materials and the bone tissue leads to osteoporosis and secondary fractures. Moreover, secondary surgeries are often necessary to remove these permanent implants. To overcome these limitations, temporary implants from biodegradable and biocompatible metals, such as magnesium (Mg) have been attracted a lot of attention. However, Mg suffers from fast corrosion rates in body fluids, which also impairs cell proliferation and just a few Mg alloys, fabricated by conventional techniques (extrusion and powder metallurgy) have been approved for bone tissue therapies so far. These techniques do not allow to control the porosity (pore shape, size and connectivity), which is necessary to ensure appropriate cell proliferation and tissue growth. Hence, the project MACS aims at developing a new generation of Mg alloys suitable to manufacture by selective laser melting porous scaffolds with optimum porosity, mechanical properties, corrosion resistance and biocompatibility to be used for bone tissue engineering. Particular emphasis will be paid to the engineering of surface coatings to ensure the appropriate rates of corrosion and cell proliferation so the biodegradable scaffold will be gradually replaced by the tissue. Porous scaffolds will be designed and manufactured by selective laser melting with the new alloy and engineered with surface coatings. The mechanical properties, corrosion resistance as well as bioactivity for bone tissue regeneration will be determined by means of in vitro tests. |
