Coral-Inspired Bacterial Cellulose/Calcium-Phosphorus Composites via Synchronous In Situ Biomineralization

Area of Science:

• Biomaterials Science
• Nanotechnology
• Composite Materials

Background:

• Fabricating bacterial cellulose/calcium-phosphorus composites (BC/Ca-P) faces challenges with weak interfacial bonding and complex processing.
• Natural biomineralization processes offer inspiration for creating advanced composite materials.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop a synchronous in situ biomineralization method for BC/Ca-P composites.
• To overcome limitations in current fabrication techniques for enhanced material properties.

Main Methods:

• Utilized calcium gluconate as a dual-functional precursor in bacterial cellulose biosynthesis.
• Controlled mineralization by varying calcium gluconate substitution ratios (10% and 100%).
• Characterized the resulting inorganic-organic architecture and material properties.

Main Results:

• Achieved uniform anchoring of Ca-P nanoparticles within the BC nanofibrous network with strong interfacial interactions.
• BC-CaG10 showed a 115% increase in mechanical strength (12.03 MPa) due to moderate mineralization.
• BC-CaG100 formed a bioactive hydroxyapatite (HAP) phase, demonstrating efficient hemostasis (71% reduction in time, 97% reduction in blood loss).

Conclusions:

• The developed method is facile, scalable, and green, producing biomimetic BC/Ca-P composites.
• The composites exhibit enhanced mechanical strength, biocompatibility, and hemostatic potential.
• These materials show promise for tissue engineering and wound management applications.