The effect of Sr concentration on bioactivity and biocompatibility of sol–gel derived glasses based on CaO–SrO–SiO2–P2O5 quaternary system

In the present study, sol–gel derived glasses based on CaO–SrO–SiO2–P2O5 system were prepared and the effect of Sr concentration on in vitro bioactivity and cellular properties of the glasses were investigated. SrO was substituted for CaO in the glass formula up to 10 mol% and in vitro bioactivity of the samples was evaluated by soaking them in simulated body fluid followed by structural characterization using XRD, FTIR and SEM techniques. The effects of various glass compositions on proliferation and differentiation of osteoblastic cells were also evaluated. The results showed that the substitution of Sr for Ca in the glass composition retarded formation of apatite layer onto the glass surfaces. Morphologies of the apatite layers were also different in which abundance of the crystals decreased with increasing Sr concentration. The bioactive glasses did not exert cytotoxic effect on the cells, however the proliferation and alkaline phosphatase activity of the cells on the samples containing low doses of Sr were higher than those of control and the samples with high dose of Sr. Glass specimen with 5 mol% of Sr exhibited appropriate bioactivity with optimal cell proliferation and ALP activity.