Titanium-Dioxide-Nanoparticle-Embedded Polyelectrolyte Multilayer as an Osteoconductive and Antimicrobial Surface Coating

Matthew Rothpan; Nitin Chandra Teja Dadi; Geoffrey McKay; Michael Tanzer; Dao Nguyen; Adam Hart; Maryam Tabrizian

doi:10.3390/ma16217026

Titanium-Dioxide-Nanoparticle-Embedded Polyelectrolyte Multilayer as an Osteoconductive and Antimicrobial Surface Coating

Materials (Basel). 2023 Nov 3;16(21):7026. doi: 10.3390/ma16217026.

Authors

Matthew Rothpan¹, Nitin Chandra Teja Dadi², Geoffrey McKay³, Michael Tanzer², Dao Nguyen^{3

4

5}, Adam Hart², Maryam Tabrizian^{1

6}

Affiliations

¹ Department of Biomedical Engineering, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, McGill University, Montreal, QC H3A 2B6, Canada.
² Jo Miller Orthopaedic Research Laboratory, Division of Orthopaedic Surgery, McGill University, Montreal, QC H3G 1A4, Canada.
³ Meakins-Christie Laboratories, Research Institute of the McGill University Health Centre, Montreal, QC H4A 3J1, Canada.
⁴ Department of Microbiology and Immunology, McGill University, Montreal, QC H3A OG4, Canada.
⁵ Department of Medicine, McGill University, Montreal, QC H4A 3J1, Canada.
⁶ Faculty of Dentistry and Oral Health Sciences, McGill University, 3640 Rue University, Montreal, QC H3A 0C7, Canada.

Abstract

Bioactive surface coatings have retained the attention of researchers and physicians due to their versatility and range of applications in orthopedics, particularly in infection prevention. Antibacterial metal nanoparticles (mNPs) are a promising therapeutic, with vast application opportunities on orthopedic implants. The current research aimed to construct a polyelectrolyte multilayer on a highly porous titanium implant using alternating thin film coatings of chitosan and alginate via the layer-by-layer (LbL) self-assembly technique, along with the incorporation of silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) or titanium dioxide nanoparticles (TiO₂NPs), for antibacterial and osteoconductive activity. These mNPs were characterized for their physicochemical properties using quartz crystal microgravimetry with a dissipation system, nanoparticle tracking analysis, scanning electron microscopy, and atomic force microscopy. Their cytotoxicity and osteogenic differentiation capabilities were assessed using AlamarBlue and alkaline phosphatase (ALP) activity assays, respectively. The antibiofilm efficacy of the mNPs was tested against Staphylococcus aureus. The LbL polyelectrolyte coating was successfully applied to the porous titanium substrate. A dose-dependent relationship between nanoparticle concentration and ALP as well as antibacterial effects was observed. TiO₂NP samples were also less cytotoxic than their AgNP counterparts, although similarly antimicrobial. Together, these data serve as a proof-of-concept for a novel coating approach for orthopedic implants with antimicrobial and osteoconductive properties.

Keywords: antibiofilm coating; bioactive coating; layer by layer; orthopedic implants; polyelectrolyte; silver nanoparticles; titanium dioxide nanoparticles.

Grants and funding

This research received funding MI4 to A.H., M.T. (Maryam Tabrizian) and (McGill Interdisciplinary Initiative in Infection and Immunity) and NSERC discovery grant to M.T. (Maryam Tabrizian).