Osteogenic and antibacterial scaffolds of silk fibroin/Ce-doped ZnO for bone tissue engineering

Among the most frequently encountered facial fractures orbital floor fractures are very common. The orbital floor fracture treatment is a challenging task due to critical size defects and intricate anatomy. Tissue engineering is a promising interdisciplinary field; providing alternate bone substitutes that act as bioactive materials to induce bone repair and growth. Nanoceria (cerium oxide nanoparticles) have excellent antibacterial properties by inducing H2O2 due to simultaneous changes in Ce3+ and Ce4+ oxidation states. In the current study, we have made-up various compositions of silk fibroin (SF) scaffolds incorporated with hydroxyapatite (HAp) and Ce-doped ZnO nanoparticles through the freeze gelation method. The composite scaffolds were characterized by using FT-IR and micro-CT techniques while mechanical stability was determined through the mechanical testing machine. The other studies performed were porosity, swelling behavior, degradation, and antibacterial studies. In vitro cell studies, including attachment of cell, the proliferation of the cell, and cytotoxicity were checked by using MC3T3-E1 preosteoblast lines of the cell. Favorable biocompatibility, attachment, and proliferation were observed. The porosity of composite scaffolds was found to be in the range of 50%–66% with an appreciable degradation rate. These novel composite scaffolds present promising candidates for craniofacial defects reconstruction.