Gelatin-coated mesoporous forsterite scaffold for bone tissue engineering

This study aims to develop a mesoporous forsterite spheres-based scaffold for bone tissue regeneration. To achieve this goal, mesoporous forsterite spheres were fabricated using alginate (gel-forming agent) and activated charcoal (porogen). The impact of carbon concentration (2, 5, 10, and 20 wt %) and sintering temperature (1100 and 1200 °C) on the structural properties of mesoporous forsterite spheres was investigated. Additionally, gelatin coatings were applied to modify these spheres. Forsterite microspheres with a particle size of 2.43 ± 0.22 mm were successfully produced, exhibiting varying pore sizes based on the sintering temperature and carbon content. Notably, mesoporous forsterite spheres synthesized using 5 wt% carbon and sintered at 1200 °C displayed uniform morphology, a minor average diameter (2.4 ± 0.3 mm(, and an average pore size of 2.7 ± 0.9 μm. These optimized forsterite spheres exhibited mesoporous structures with superior surface area (2.93 m2g-1) and pore volume (0.009–0.048 cm3g-1). Furthermore, the gelatin coating, with an average thickness of 160 μm, was effectively applied to the forsterite spheres. The gelatin coating reduced the surface area (1.40 m2g-1), pore volume (0.003 cm3g-1), and average pore diameter to 9.26 nm, maintaining the mesoporous structure. Both mesoporous forsterite spheres successfully induced bone-like apatite formation in vitro during a 21-day immersion in simulated body fluid. Moreover, while both forsterite-based spheres exhibited cytocompatibility with MG63 cells (cell viability >80 %), the gelatin coating significantly enhanced osteogenic differentiation (1.29 times). In conclusion, gelatin-coated mesoporous forsterite spheres exhibit promising potential as bioactive filling scaffolds for bone tissue regeneration.