Nanoscale borosilicate bioactive glass for regenerative therapy of full-thickness skin defects in rabbit animal model

Noha Elshazly; Manal M Saad; Rania M El Backly; Ayat Hamdy; Marco Patruno; Samir Nouh; Suman Saha; Jui Chakraborty; Mona K Marei

doi:10.3389/fbioe.2023.1036125

Nanoscale borosilicate bioactive glass for regenerative therapy of full-thickness skin defects in rabbit animal model

Front Bioeng Biotechnol. 2023 May 18:11:1036125. doi: 10.3389/fbioe.2023.1036125. eCollection 2023.

Authors

Noha Elshazly^{1

2}, Manal M Saad^{1

3}, Rania M El Backly^{1

4}, Ayat Hamdy¹, Marco Patruno², Samir Nouh^{1

5}, Suman Saha⁶, Jui Chakraborty⁶, Mona K Marei^{1

7}

Affiliations

¹ Tissue Engineering Laboratories, Faculty of Dentistry, Alexandria University, Alexandria, Egypt.
² Department of Comparative Biomedicine and Food Science, University of Padova, Legnaro, Italy.
³ Oral Biology, Faculty of Oral and Dental Medicine, Ahram Canadian University, Giza, Egypt.
⁴ Endodontics, Conservative Dentistry Department, Faculty of Dentistry, Alexandria University, Alexandria, Egypt.
⁵ Department of Surgery, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Alexandria University, Alexandria, Egypt.
⁶ Bioceramics and Coating Division, Central Glass and Ceramics Research Institutes, Kolkata, India.
⁷ Department of Removable Prosthodontics, Faculty of Dentistry, Alexandria University, Alexandria, Egypt.

Abstract

Bioactive glass (BG) occupies a significant position in the field of hard and soft tissue regeneration. Different processing techniques and formulas have been introduced to expand their regenerative, angiogenic, and antibacterial properties. In the present study, a new formula of bborosilicate bioactive glass nanofibers was prepared and tested for its wound-healing efficacy in a rabbit animal model. The glass formula ((1-2) mol% of B₂O₃ (68-69) mol% of SiO2, and (29-30) mol% of CaO) was prepared primarily by the sol-gel technique followed by the electrospinning technique. The material was characterized for its ultrastructure using scanning electron microscopy, chemical composition using FTIR, and its dynamic in vitro biodegradability using ICP-AES. Twelve rabbits were subjected to surgical induction of full-thickness skin defects using a 1 cm² custom-made stainlessteel skin punch. The bioactive glass nanofibers were used as a grafting material in 6 experimental rabbits, while the defects in the remaining rabbits were considered as the negative control samples. All defects were assessed clinically for the decrease in wound size and clinical signs of healing and histologically for angiogenesis, collagen density, inflammatory response, cell recruitment, epithelial lining, and appendages at 1,2 and 3 weeks following the intervention. Structural analysis of the glass fibers confirmed their nano-size which ranged from 150 to 700 nm. Moreover, the chemical analysis confirmed the presence of SiO₂ and B₂O₃ groups within the structure of the nanofibers. Additionally, dynamic biodegradation analysis confirmed the rapid degradation of the material starting from the first 24 h and rapid leaching of calcium, silicon, and boron ions confirming its bioactivity. The wound healing study of the nanofibrous scaffold confirmed its ability to accelerate wound healing and the closure rate in healthy rabbits. Histological analysis of the defects confirmed the angiogenic, regenerative and antibacterial ability of the material throughout the study period. The results unveil the powerful therapeutic properties of the formed nanofibers and open a new gate for more experimental and clinical applications.

Keywords: angiogenesis; bioactive glass; diabetes mellitus; electrospinning; nanofibers; skin regeneration; wound healing.

Grants and funding

This research was funded by: 1. A research grant from The Egyptian Academy of Scientific Research and Technology (ASRT) as a part of bilateral scientific and technological cooperation between the Arab Republic of Egypt and The Republic of India. 2. Italian MIUR, Grant Number 2017FNZPNN (PRIN 2017 PI: MP).