Qi Xie ¹ Tianqi Wang ¹ Lina He ¹ Jingxuan Sun ¹ Hongbo Liang ² Xiaoxiao Huang ² Weili Xie ¹ Yumei Niu ^1*

• ¹ The First Affiliated Hospital of Harbin Medical University, School of Stomatology, Harbin Medical University, Harbin, China, Harbin, China
• ² School of Materials Science and Engineering, Harbin Institute of Technology, Harbin, Heilongjiang Province, China

To address the challenges related to bone defects, including osteoinductivity deficiency and postimplantation infection risk, this study developed the collagen composite scaffolds (CUR-GO-COL) with multifunctionality by integrating the curcumin-loaded graphene oxide with collagen through a freeze-drying-cross-linking process. Their morphological and structural characteristics were analyzed, as well as the physicochemical properties, including water absorption, water retention and porosity. The CUR-GO-COL composite scaffold with a CUR-GO concentration of 0.05% (w/v) exhibits optimal biological compatibility and stable and slow curcumin release rate. Furthermore, in vitro cell and bacterial tests demonstrated that the prepared CUR-GO-COL composite scaffolds enhance cell viability, proliferation and adhesion, and offer superior osteogenic and antimicrobial properties compared with the CUR-GO composite scaffold, confirming the osteogenesis promotion and antimicrobial effects. Therefore, the introduction of CUR-GO into collagen scaffold creates a bonefriendly microenvironment, and offers a theoretical foundation for the design, investigation and utilization of multifunctional bone tissue biomaterials.