Micro-engineered biomineralized materials for bone tissue engineering

We microfabricated a group of parallel grooves/ridges on silicon surfaces using standard photolithography and reactive ion etching. Anionic groups were immobilized to the patterned surfaces to induce mineralization under physiological conditions - an approach frequently adopted in the natural biomineralization process. The formed minerals, mainly calcium phosphates, were characterized using scanning electron microscopy and X-ray diffraction analysis. Biomineralized micropatterned silicon chips were placed in cell culture medium to test the stability of the mineral layers. The viability of fibroblasts and osteoblast-like cells on mineralized surface was comparable to that on cell culture plates. In addition, the grooves/ridges also affected cell behavior on patterned surfaces. These results suggest that we have produced highly biocompatible materials with potential applications in bone tissue engineering.