journal article·2026-05-02Open access

Modeling of In Vivo Electrochemical Noise: A Computational Framework to Optimize the Corrosion Monitoring of Biodegradable Magnesium Implants

Kirill Makrinsky, Alexey Klyuev, Oleg Batishchev

Abstract

Biodegradable magnesium implants offer significant clinical promise, but their safe use requires reliable real-time in vivo monitoring of coating integrity. Existing methods lack sufficient sensitivity and temporal resolution to detect degradation at early stages, and there are no computational tools able to predict the success of a given sensor design before animal experiments. In the present paper, we present BioElectroSynth—a digital simulator of an implantable zero-resistance ammetry (ZRA) corrosion sensor in a mouse model. The simulator combines electrochemical noise, cardiac and muscular bioelectric interference, and instrumental limitations into a unified model, enabling virtual experiments, which mimic the complexity of the in vivo system. Using Monte Carlo analysis, we establish that a 2% breach in a chitosan coating on an AZ91 magnesium alloy electrode is statistically detectable from approximately 30 recordings of 30 s each, and quantify how electrode area, its location, sampling rate, and coating quality jointly determine detection sensitivity. The framework provides the first quantitative tool for predicting in vivo experiment feasibility from standard in vitro electrochemical data alone. By identifying instrument and design configurations that are statistically underpowered before any animal use, the approach directly supports the 3R principles of humane research.
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Research context

OpenAlex topics: Magnesium Alloys: Properties and Applications · Hydrogen embrittlement and corrosion behaviors in metals · Shape Memory Alloy Transformations

SciVX discovery tags are terminology-based. OpenAlex topics are source-provided classifications.

Affiliations

Frumkin Institute of Physical Chemistry and Electrochemistry, Russian Academy of Sciences, 31/4 Leninskiy pr., 119071 Moscow, Russia

Funding

Ministry of Science and Higher Education of the Russian Federation

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