3D-printed porous tantalum: recent application in various drug delivery systems to repair hard tissue defects

ABSTRACT

Introduction

The treatment of hard tissue defects, especially those of bone and cartilage, induced by infections or tumors remains challenging. Traditional methods, including debridement with systematic chemotherapy, have shortcomings owing to their inability to eliminate infections and high systematic toxicity.

Area covered

This review comprehensively summarizes and discusses the current applications of 3D-printed porous tantalum (3D-P-p-Ta), a novel drug delivery strategy, in drug delivery systems to repair hard tissue defects, as well as the limitations of existing data and potential future research directions.

Expert opinion

Drug delivery systems have advanced medical treatments, with the advantages of high local drug concentration, long drug-release period, and minimal systematic toxicity. Due to its excellent biocompatibility, ideal mechanical property, and anti-corrosion ability, porous tantalum is one of the most preferable loading scaffolds. 3D printing allows for freedom of design and facilitates the production of regular porous implants with high repeatability. There are several reports on the application of 3D-P-p-Ta in drug delivery systems for the management of infection- or tumor-associated bone defects, yet, to the best of our knowledge, no reviews have summarized the current research progress.

KEYWORDS:

• Anti-bacteria
• antitumor
• drug delivery
• hard tissue defects
• porous tantalum
• 3d printing

Article Highlights

• Hard tissue defects, including critical bone and osteochondral defects, of various causes remain challenging for orthopedic surgeons since they are difficult to treat or eliminate their recurrence.

• Due to its excellent corrosion resistance, histocompatibility, mechanical properties which are similar to those of human cancellous bone, excellent bone integration ability, and personalized printing characteristics, 3D-P-p-Ta is considered as the most ideal orthopedic implant material presently available.

• 3D-P-p-Ta drug loading can be achieved using several methods, such as dip-coating, surface modification, packaging with hydrogel, so as to obtain excellent drug delivery capability.

• At present, the drug delivery research using 3D-P-p-Ta has included anti-infection, anti-tumor, as well as bone and cartilage promotion.

• Drug dose optimization design and clinical transformation application warrant further improvement.

Declaration of interest

The authors have no relevant affiliations or financial involvement with any organization or entity with a financial interest in or financial conflict with the subject matter or materials discussed in the manuscript. This includes employment, consultancies, honoraria, stock ownership or options, expert testimony, grants or patents received or pending, or royalties.

Reviewer disclosures

Peer reviewers on this manuscript have no relevant financial or other relationships to disclose.

Abbreviation

DDSdrug delivery system

CADcomputer-aided design

3D-P-p-Ta3D printed porous tantalum

MSSAmethicillin-sensitive Staphylococcus aureus

CaPcalcium phosphide

HAhydroxyapatite

TGFtransforming growth factor

PCLpolycaprolactone

BMPbone morphogenetic protein

BMSCsbone marrow mesenchymal stem cells.

Additional information

Funding

This study was supported by the Natural Science Foundation of Hunan Province, China (Grant No. 2018JJ3844 and 2019JJ40499), the Scientific Research Project of Health and Family Planning Commission of Hunan Province, China (Grant No. B2019188), Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant No. 81672656 and 82002277), the Young Science Foundation of Xiangya Hospital Central South University (Grant No. 2017Q07), the Postdoctoral Research Program of Xiangya Hospital Central South University (Grant No. 223551). National key research and development project(2016YFC1100605 and 2018YFB1105504).