(228em) Bactericidal Surface Chemistry That Enhances Implant Biointegration

Implants for years have been a vital tool in the medical field, but these implants often integrate poorly with the recipient tissue which can eventually lead to the implant failure. Bacterial infection is another major concern associated with the implantation procedures. Implant failure requires the removal surgery which is costly and invasive. In order to address this important issue, we propose a multifunctional surface chemistry that enables the implant surface to integrate with the surrounding tissue and at the same time suppresses bacterial growth. The main feature of this surface chemistry is the presence of nanopatterns of cell adhesive ligands (RGD peptide) on top of the bactericidal coating. The silane chemistry was used to coat the glass substrate with the quaternary amine-based antibacterial molecules. Nanopatterns were created by the adsorption of gold nanoparticles, onto which cell adhesive RGD peptides were immobilized. The surface chemistry was characterized by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and field-emission scanning electron microscopy (FE-SEM). The antibacterial property of the surface was tested by culturing E.coli with the surface for 4 hours and measuring its proliferation. Human mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) were cultured on the surfaces, and the differentiation into osteoblasts was observed over two weeks. The differentiation of the cells were characterized using alkaline phosphatase assay (ALP), qRT-PCR, and fluorescence microscopy. These surfaces have the potential to advance the use of medical implants by improving implant integration and reducing the risk of bacterial infection associated with the implantation procedures.