In vivo biodegradation and biological properties of a Mg-Zn-Ca amorphous alloy for bone defect repair

ABSTRACT

Amorphous magnesium alloys, characterised by their unique disordered structure, exhibit exceptional mechanical properties and superior corrosion resistance. This study introduced a novel biodegradable Mg-Zn-Ca amorphous alloy. Immersion and electrochemical tests revealed uniform degradation in a simulated body fluid environment. The degradation products predominantly contained zinc and oxygen. After 28 days of immersion, the alloy’s structure largely remained intact, and it exhibited a minimal weight loss rate of 11.64 ± 1.85%, indicating its excellent corrosion resistance. In addition, the homogeneous and rapid degradation of the Mg-Zn-Ca amorphous alloy in rats (the residual volume at 12 weeks was 14.94 ± 5.05%, at least 2–3 times of the corrosion rate of immersion in vitro), thus increasing the bone volume/total volume and trabecular number. The new bone and the residual material surface showed good bone integration. Blood and organ tissue tests confirmed the in vivo biological safety. Therefore, Mg-Zn-Ca amorphous alloys have excellent potential as bone-repair materials, especially in load-bearing areas.

KEYWORDS:

• Mg-Zn-Ca amorphous alloy
• bone defects
• biodegradation
• osteogenesis

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Institutional review board statement

The animal study protocol was approved by the Institutional Ethics Committee of the Affiliated Hospital of Shandong University of Traditional Chinese Medicine (protocol code 2021–67, and date of approval is 11 August 2021)

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (No.51971222), the Natural Science Foundation of Shandong Province (No.ZR2022MH021), and the Clinical Medical Science and Technology Innovation Program of the Jinan Science andTechnology Bureau (202019156).