Surface coated polyurethane with improved bioactivity and cytocompatability

Abstract

Polyurethane (PU) may be suitable for various implant applications; however, it lacks bioactivity. Bioactivity allows for direct tissue attachment at the bio- interface, enabling implant fixation while preventing fibrous encapsulation. To impart bioactivity, PU was coated with a layer of hydroxyapatite (HA) by a solvent- compression method. Bioactivity of the HA- coated PU substrates was demonstrated by incubation in simulated body fluid (SBF) for up to nine days. Using crystal violet DNA staining and MTT (3- [4,5 dimethylthiazol- 2-yl]-2,5-diphenyl tetrazolium bromide) assay for determining the cell number and cell metabolic activity respectively, cytocompatibility of the HA-coated PU substrates was demonstrated towards a number of cell lines. The HA-coated PU substrates prepared in this study could find application where non- resorbable biomaterials are required, including cartilage replacement, maxillofacial implants, ID tags and biosensors