One-step method for the preparation of poly(methyl methacrylate) modified titanium-bioactive glass three-dimensional scaffolds for bone tissue engineering.

A novel three-dimensional (3D) titanium (Ti)-doping meso-macroporous bioactive glasses (BGs)/poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) composite was synthesised using PMMA and EO20PO70EO20 (P123) as the macroporous and mesoporous templates, respectively. Unlike the usual calcination method, the acid steam technique was used to improve the polycondensation of Ti-BGs, and then PMMA was partially extracted via chloroform to induce the macroporous structure. Simultaneously, the residual PMMA which remained in the wall enhanced the compressive strength to 2.4 MPa (0.3 MPa for pure BGs). It is a simple and green method to prepare the macro-mesoporous Ti-BGs/PMMA. The materials showed the 3D interconnected hierarchical structure (250 and 3.4 nm), making the fast inducing-hydroxyapatite growth and the controlled drug release. Besides mentioned above, the good antimicrobial property and biocompatible of the scaffold also ensure it is further of clinical use. Herein, the fabricated materials are expected to have potential application on bone tissue regeneration.