Characteristics and mechanical properties of acrylolpamidronate‐treated strontium containing bioactive bone cement

Abstract The aim of the present study was to determine the influence of surface treatment on the mechanical properties of strontium‐containing hydroxyapatite (Sr‐HA) bioactive bone cement. Previously we developed an injectable bioactive cement (SrHAC) system composed of Sr‐HA powders and bisphenol A diglycidylether dimethacrylate (Bis‐GMA). In this study, the Sr‐HA powder was subjected to surface treatment using acrylolpamidronate, a bisphosphonate derivative, which has a polymerizable group, to improve the interface between inorganic filler and organic matrix by binding Sr‐HA and copolymerizing into the matrix. After surface treatment, the compression strength, bending strength, and stiffness of the resulting composites were defined by using a material testing machine (MTS) according to ISO 5833. The fracture surface of the bone cement specimen was observed with a scanning electron microscope. Invitro cytotoxicity of surface‐treated SrHAC was also studied using a tetrazolium‐based cell viability assay (MTS/pms) on human osteoblast‐like cells, the SaOS‐2 cell line. Cells were seeded at a density of 10⁴/mL and allowed to grow in an incubator for 48 h at 37°C. Results indicated that after surface treatment, the compression strength and stiffness significantly improved by 22.68 and 14.51%, respectively. The bending strength and stiffness of the bioactive bone cement also showed 19.06 and 8.91% improvements via three‐point bending test. The fracture surface micromorphology after compression and bending revealed that the bonding between the resin to surface‐treated filler considerably improved. The cell viability indicated that the treated particles were nontoxic and did not inhibit cell growth. This study demonstrated a new surface chemistry route to enhance the covalent bonds between inorganic fillers and polymer matrix for improving the mechanical properties of bone cement. This method not only improves the overall mechanical performance but also increases osteoblastic activity. © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Biomed Mater Res Part B: Appl Biomater, 2007