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A novel composite coating and its assessment for biomedical applications

A new study describes the synthesis and characterisation of an iron oxide-hydroxyapatite-chitosan composite coating and its biological assessment for biomedical applications.
Medical staff in the operating theatre.
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Biofilms on surfaces causes persistent infections and is an issue of considerable concern to healthcare providers. Image source: sasint - Pixabay (symbol image). 

Hydroxyapatite coatings are widely employed to enhance the osseointegration ability and bioactivity of biodegradable magnesium alloys as biodegradable implants. To further enhance the efficiency of hydroxyapatite-coated magnesium alloys, iron oxide particles were now used along with hydroxyapatite to produce the antimicrobial and bioactive coating via electrophoretic deposition.

The coatings were integrated in a matrix of chitosan. The experiments were carried out with different iron oxide particle concentrations i.e., 1, 3 and 5 (wt. %)), respectively. The antimicrobial property was investigated in Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus strains, which confirmed that the micro-organisms development was suppressed by the significant rise of iron oxide particles.

Material for biomedical implant applications

Evaluation of bioactivity behavior was carried out in phosphate buffer saline for 7 days, and the composite coatings were found to enhance the apatite mineralization, as affirmed by SEM-EDX analysis. The assessment of hemocompatibility showed that the hemolysis ratio was less than 5 %, which confirms that the coatings were blood compatible in nature.

According to the scientists, the outcomes showed that hydroxyapatite-iron oxide-chitosan composite coating may be extensively utilised as an appropriate material for biomedical implant applications.

The study has been published in Progress in Organic Coatings, Volume 150, January 2021.