The in vitro behavior of as-prepared and pre-immersed RF-sputtered calcium phosphate thin films in a rat bone marrow cell model

In this paper we focus on the behavior of radio frequency (RF)-sputtered calcium phosphate (CaP) thin films in a rat bone marrow (RBM) cell model. Two issues are addressed. Firstly, we benchmarked the in vitro cell behavior of these CaP coatings by comparing their proliferation, differentiation and mineralization behavior and the structure of the formed interface to similar coatings of alumina and titania. We found that the CaP coatings showed reduced proliferation, enhanced early differentiation and enhanced activity of mature osteoblasts compared to the alumina coatings. Enhanced production of mineralized extracellular matrix (ECM) was seen for both CaP and titania. Two types of CaP precipitates could be observed, one directly bonded CaP layer at the coating interface and one of globular accretions associated with the ECM. The directly bonded layer was not observed on the alumina coatings. Further, no thin film effects were found. Secondly, the effect of pre-immersion of the CaP coatings in SBF2 was explored. We found that the early formation of a directly bonded CaP layer is obstructed by the absence of CaP nuclei. After approximately 8 days, cell activity induces the nucleation of CaP crystals on both the surface and the ECM, and growth is enhanced. By initially providing these coatings with CaP crystals, growth of the directly bonded CaP layer is immediate. Hence, the formation of the interfacial CaP layer and the matrix-associated CaP accretions can effectively be decoupled.