Hydrogel bio-nanocomposite beads based on alginate and silica: physicochemical and in vitro bioactivity evaluations

Tissue engineering seeks to emulation of the tissue's biological properties. In the domain of bone repair, tissue engineering is looking for bioactive alternatives. The current work aims to prepare calcium alginate/SiO(2 )bio-nanocomposite (bio-NC) beads with the bioactivity inherent feature for use in bone tissue engineering. In this way, at first, different amounts of SiO2 nanoparticles (NPs) (4, 8, and 12 wt.%) were homogeneously dispersed into the sodium alginate solution using ultrasound waves. Then, spherical NC beads were produced by dropping sodium alginate/SiO(2 )bio-NC into the CaCl(2 )solution as a cross-linking agent until the reaction was complete. Transmission electron microscopy micrographs revealed homogeneous dispersion of SiO(2 )NPs into the calcium alginate. Finally, the bioactivity properties of calcium alginate/SiO(2 )bio-NC beads were confirmed through energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy with the formation of hydroxyapatite layers after immersing them in the simulated body fluid solution.