Approach for fabricating bioglass coatings on reticulated vitreous carbon foams for tissue engineering applications

Reticulated vitreous carbon foams have recently been used in the fabrication of scaffolds for biomedical applications, and have been shown to support cell adhesion. In this research, a methodology for coating reticulated vitreous carbon foams with two different bioglasses synthesized using the sol-gel technique is presented, towards enhancing the bioactivity of the reticulated vitreous carbon scaffolds. These coatings were morphologically characterized by confocal optical microscopy and scanning electron microscopy. Moreover, reactivity of the coated foams was also evaluated through in vitro tests by immersion in physiological solution. The results show successful deposition of the bioglass coating on the surface of the foams without compromising foam porosity. Coating morphological studies revealed a relationship between the composition of the bioglass and the final morphology of the coating. Additionally, preliminary in vitro tests showed that coating reactivity was also related to initial coating composition. Although the coatings dissolved after 21 days in PBS, the precipitation of a calcium-phosphate layer indicated the potential presence of the initial phases of the apatite formation process.