Functionalized polyhedral oligosilsesquioxane (POSS) based composites for bone tissue engineering: synthesis,...

Area of Science:

• Materials Science
• Biomaterials Engineering
• Organic Chemistry

Background:

• Polyhedral oligosilsesquioxanes (POSS) are versatile nanoscale building blocks.
• Chitosan is a biocompatible polymer with applications in tissue engineering.
• Developing advanced composite materials is crucial for regenerative medicine.

Purpose of the Study:

• To synthesize and characterize a novel chitosan-POSS hybrid material.
• To evaluate the material's suitability for bone tissue engineering.
• To assess drug delivery capabilities and biocompatibility.

Main Methods:

• Microwave-assisted 1,3-dipolar cycloaddition for POSS functionalization.
• Covalent conjugation of functionalized POSS with chitosan.
• Gelification of the composite material using genipin.
• In vitro drug release studies with ketoprofen.
• Cytotoxicity assays using human fetal osteoblastic cells.

Main Results:

• Successful synthesis of functionalized POSS and chitosan-POSS composite (CS-POSS 7).
• Computational studies (DFT) supported the cycloaddition mechanism.
• The CS-POSS material demonstrated controlled in vitro release of ketoprofen.
• Preliminary assays showed no cytotoxicity on human fetal osteoblastic cells.

Conclusions:

• The synthesized chitosan-POSS hybrid material is a promising candidate for bone tissue engineering.
• The material exhibits good biocompatibility and potential for drug delivery.
• Further investigation is warranted to explore its full regenerative potential.