Sol–gel derived B₂O₃–CaO borate bioactive glasses with hemostatic, antibacterial and pro-angiogenic activities

Abstract

Sol–gel borate bioactive glasses (BGs) are promising ion-releasing biomaterials for wound healing applications. Here, we report the synthesis of a series of binary B₂O₃–CaO borate BGs (CaO ranging from 50 to 90 mol%) using a sol–gel-based method. The influence of CaO content in B₂O₃–CaO borate BG on morphology, structure and ion release behavior was investigated in detail. Reduced dissolution (ion release) and crystallization could be observed in borate BGs when CaO content increased, while the morphology was not significantly altered by increasing CaO content. Our results evidenced that the ion release behavior of borate BGs could be tailored by tuning the B₂O₃/CaO molar ratio. We also evaluated the in vitro cytotoxicity, hemostatic, antibacterial and angiogenic activities of borate BGs. Cytocompatibility was validated for all borate BGs. However, borate BGs exhibited composition-dependent hemostatic, antibacterial and angiogenic activities. Generally, higher contents of Ca in borate BGs facilitated hemostatic activity, while higher contents of B₂O₃ were beneficial for pro-angiogenic activity. The synthesized sol–gel-derived borate BGs are promising materials for developing advanced wound healing dressings, given their fast ion release behavior and favorable hemostatic, antibacterial and angiogenic activities.