Metainterface Heterostructure Enhances Sonodynamic Therapy for Disrupting Secondary Biofilms

Area of Science:

• Biomaterials Science
• Nanotechnology
• Medical Engineering

Background:

• Implant-related secondary infections pose significant clinical challenges.
• Sonodynamic therapy (SDT) shows potential for nonsurgical treatment of biofilm infections.
• Current SDT methods face limitations due to inefficient acoustic sensitization.

Purpose of the Study:

• To design and develop a metainterface heterostructure to enhance SDT efficiency for implant infections.
• To investigate the sonodynamic and acoustic-to-thermal conversion properties of the metainterface.
• To evaluate the efficacy of synergistic therapy against biofilm infections and its impact on osseointegration.

Main Methods:

• Fabrication of a TiO2/Ti2O3/vertical graphene metainterface heterostructure film on titanium implants.
• Characterization of the metainterface's sonodynamic and acoustic-to-thermal conversion effects under low-intensity ultrasound.
• In vitro evaluation of biofilm disruption against Staphylococcus aureus and Escherichia coli.
• In vivo assessment of the film's performance in improving osseointegration.

Main Results:

• The metainterface heterostructure demonstrated enhanced sonodynamic and acoustic-to-thermal effects.
• Synergistic sonodynamic/mild sonothermal therapy achieved high antibacterial rates (99.99% for S. aureus, 99.54% for E. coli).
• Significant improvement in implant osseointegration was observed in vivo.

Conclusions:

• The developed metainterface heterostructure film effectively enhances SDT for combating secondary biofilm infections.
• This approach offers a promising strategy for nonsurgical treatment of implant-related infections.
• The findings provide a foundation for using metainterfaces to manipulate electron transport for improved catalytic performance in biomedical applications.