Bioactive sol-gel glass-coated wood-derived biocarbon scaffolds

Bioactive glass coatings were deposited for the first time onto wood-derived biocarbon scaffolds using the sol-gel technique. The cellular pore structure of the beech wood was retained during the sol-gel coating process. Owing to the presence of the bioactive glass layer, the originally bioinert biocarbon scaffold was fully covered with newly-formed hydroxyapatite (HA) upon soaking in simulated body fluid. The ability to form HA is generally accepted as the proof of in vitro bioactivity. This opens up the possible application of wood-derived scaffolds in biomedicine (bone repair) and biotechnology.