Bioactive glass materials for tissue regeneration

The development of bioactive glasses, which began with the Hench’s invention of Bioglass®, has considerably advanced over the past 20 years toward the creation of materials that not only chemically bond to living tissue, but also promote tissue regeneration. Some inorganic ions have the effect of stimulating cells and promoting biological functions, including bone formation. Glass-based materials have a significant advantage in the controlled release of inorganic ions because their compositions can be chosen systematically. Stimulating cells and improving therapeutic effects via the inclusion of various inorganic ions released from bioactive glass may represent a key strategy in the development of advanced biomaterials. This paper briefly reviews the research work related to bioactive glasses designed for tissue regeneration undertaken in the past two decades.