Piezoelectric PDMS/AlN Film for Osteogenesis <i>in Vitro</i>
Haotian Tang, Youtian Mo, Wei Li, Han Hu, Liang Chen, Rui Zhu, Dongliang Zhang, Peidong Ouyang, Wenliang Wang, Guoqiang Li, Jing Tian
Abstract
Bone defect and nonunion are complex diseases which are difficult to treat due to insufficient bone regeneration. Electrical stimulation has attracted attention as a promising strategy to induce and enhance bone regeneration. Self-powered and biocompatible materials have been widely explored and used in biomedical devices, owing to their ability to produce electrical stimulation without an external power source. We aimed to prepare a piezoelectric polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS)/aluminum nitride (AlN) film with excellent biocompatibility and osteoconductive ability for the growth of murine calvarial preosteoblast MC3T3-E1 cells. By applying vibration to stimulate body movement, the PDMS/AlN film demonstrated a current density of 2–6 μA cm –2, and the generated continuous alternating current (AC) effectively promoted MC3T3-E1 cell growth, viability, and osteoblastic related gene expression (genes runt-related transcription factor 2 [ RUNX2 ], osteocalcin [ OCN ], alkaline phosphatase [ ALP ]) and exhibited higher mineralization. Compared to blank plates and nonvibrated PDMS/AlN films, the vibrated PDMS/AlN film showed rapid and superior osteogenic differentiation. The design of the biocompatible and flexible piezoelectric PDMS/AlN film overcame the poor processability, brittleness, and instability of electrical stimulation of traditional electroactive materials, demonstrating great potential in the application of electrical stimulation for bone tissue engineering.