The effects of morphology on physicochemical properties, bioactivity and biocompatibility of micro-/nano-bioactive glasses

We prepared micro-/nano-bioactive glasses (MNBG) with controlled morphologies by using a sol-gel method combined with a template (CTAB) centered self-assembly technology, and investigated the effect of the MNBG morphology on physicochemical properties, apatite-forming ability and biocompatibility. Results showed that the specific surface area of rod-like MNBG (RBG) with highly ordered mesoporous structure was higher than that of spherical MNBG (SBG) with irregular worm-like mesoporous structure. Both the MNBG showed the high apatite-forming ability, and the apatite-forming ability of RBG with higher specific surface area was higher than that of SBG. Futhermore, both SBG and RBG had good biocompatibility, could promote proliferation and ALP differentiation of human dental pulp cells (HDPCs), and SBG with a smaller aspect ratio could significantly increase the proliferation and differentiation of the cells, as compared to RBG. This study may motivate the development and applications of MNBG with controllable morphology in dental repair.