Antibacterial and osteoinductive properties of demineralized bone matrix treated with silver

The problems incurred by storage of demineralized bone allograft material and its potential use in contaminated operative sites make an antibacterial property desirable. Silver was considered for this role because of its wide spectrum of antibacterial susceptibility, low incidence of resistance, and its ability to persistently inhibit bacteria after binding to collagen matrices. Demineralized bone matrix prepared from rat diaphyseal bone segments was treated by exposure fo AgCl, AgNO3 and NaNO3 solutions prior to lyophilization. The resulting material was tested for bacterial inhibition after incubation in saline solutions for various times and showed inhibition persisting for at least four weeks (Ag-treated material only). Silver treating the matrix was found to partially inhibit the osteoinductive capacity at 10(-3) and 10(-2) M but not at 10(-5) M as measured by intramuscular implantation in the rat for six weeks. Control and NaNo3-treated specimens showed normal bone growth as measured by ashing and by 99mTc binding, and confirmed by radiologic densities. Histologic sections showed dense microdeposits on dense material predominately near the decalcified bone surfaces, but also within the matrix. The results suggest that pretreatment with silver at concentrations in the 10(-4) range would render the implant material antibacterial, protect its sterility, and leave the osteoinductive capacity intact.