Multifunctional Y₂O₃-Modified Borotellurite Bioactive Glasses for Bone Tissue Engineering Applications

Area of Science:

• Biomaterials Science
• Materials Science
• Biotechnology

Background:

• Developing bioactive glasses for bone tissue engineering presents challenges in achieving mechanical reliability, cytocompatibility, controlled ion release, and antibacterial functionality.
• Borotellurite glasses offer potential but require optimization for enhanced performance.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the impact of yttrium oxide (Y₂O₃) incorporation on the composition-structure-property relationships of borotellurite bioactive glasses.
• To engineer glasses with improved mechanical, thermal, biological, and antibacterial properties for bone repair applications.

Main Methods:

• Synthesized borotellurite glasses with varying Y₂O₃ content (0-7 mol.%) using the composition (45 - x)TeO₂-20Na₂O-10CaO-15P₂O₅-10B₂O₃-xY₂O₃.
• Evaluated structural, thermal, mechanical, ion-release, bioactivity, cytocompatibility, cell-adhesion, and antibacterial properties.
• Modified promising compositions with silver surface coating for enhanced antibacterial effects.

Main Results:

• Y₂O₃ incorporation significantly improved thermal stability, hardness (up to 4.317 GPa), and fracture resistance.
• Optimal compressive strength (67.97 MPa) was achieved at 1 mol.% Y₂O₃.
• Y₂O₃ mitigated long-term cytotoxicity, maintained bioactivity, promoted osteoblast adhesion, and reduced bacterial adhesion (especially *S. aureus* after silver coating).

Conclusions:

• Yttrium oxide acts as an effective multifunctional modifier for borotellurite bioactive glasses.
• The developed glasses exhibit enhanced mechanical robustness, favorable biological interactions, and antibacterial capabilities.
• These Y₂O₃-modified glasses show significant promise for bone tissue engineering and repair applications.