In vitro and in vivo corrosion, cytocompatibility and mechanical properties of biodegradable Mg–Y–Ca–Zr alloys as implant materials

This study introduces a class of biodegradable Mg–Y–Ca–Zr alloys novel to biological applications and presents evaluations for orthopedic and craniofacial implant applications. Mg–Y–Ca–Zr alloys were processed using conventional melting and casting techniques. The effects of increasing Y content from 1 to 4 wt.% as well as the effects of T4 solution treatment were assessed. Basic material phase characterization was conducted using X-ray diffraction, optical microscopy and scanning electron microscopy. Compressive and tensile tests allowed for the comparison of mechanical properties of the as-cast and T4-treated Mg–Y–Ca–Zr alloys to pure Mg and as-drawn AZ31. Potentiodynamic polarization tests and mass loss immersion tests were used to evaluate the corrosion behavior of the alloys. In vitro cytocompatibility tests on MC3T3-E1 pre-osteoblast cells were also conducted. Finally, alloy pellets were implanted into murine subcutaneous tissue to observe in vivo corrosion as well as local host response through H&E staining. SEM/EDS analysis showed that secondary phase intermetallics rich in yttrium were observed along the grain boundaries, with the T4 solution treatment diffusing the secondary phases into the matrix while increasing the grain size. The alloys demonstrated marked improvement in mechanical properties over pure Mg. Increasing the Y content contributed to improved corrosion resistance, while solution-treated alloys resulted in lower strength and compressive strain compared to as-cast alloys. The Mg–Y–Ca–Zr alloys demonstrated excellent in vitro cytocompatibility and normal in vivo host response. The mechanical, corrosion and biological evaluations performed in this study demonstrated that Mg–Y–Ca–Zr alloys, especially with the 4 wt.% Y content, would perform well as orthopedic and craniofacial implant biomaterials.