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ORIGINAL RESEARCH article
Front. Bioeng. Biotechnol.
Sec. Nanobiotechnology
Volume 13 - 2025 | doi: 10.3389/fbioe.2025.1537856
This article is part of the Research Topic Advanced Biocompatible Piezoelectrics: Synthesis, Characterization, and Applications View all 3 articles
Influence of Zirconium Dioxide (ZrO2) and Magnetite (Fe3O4) Additions on the Structural, Electrical, and Biological Properties of Bioglass ® for Metal Implant Coatings
Provisionally accepted
Imen Hammami 1
Manuel Pedro Graca 1*
Sílvia Gavinho 1
Joana Regadas 1
Suresh Kumar Jakka 1
Ana Padua 2 Jorge Silva 2
Isabel Sá Nogueira 2
João Paulo Borges 2- 1 University of Aveiro, Aveiro, Portugal
- 2 NOVA University of Lisbon, Lisbon, Lisboa, Portugal
The growing need for durable implants, driven by aging populations and increased trauma cases, highlights challenges like limited osseointegration and biofilm formation. 45S5 Bioglass® has demonstrated promise due to its bioactivity, antimicrobial properties, and ability to enhance osseointegration through electrical polarization. This study investigates the effects of incorporating different concentrations of ZrO2 and Fe3O4 into 45S5 Bioglass® to enhance its electrical and biological properties. Raman analysis revealed that these oxides influenced the amount of non-bridging oxygens (NBOs) affecting the glass network connectivity. Compared to Fe3O4, the bioglasses containing ZrO2 exhibited higher NBO content, resulting in improved electrical and biological properties. Electrical characterization was performed using impedance spectroscopy, confirming that the presence of ZrO2 increases the conductivity via ion mobility. Antibacterial activity was evaluated using the agar diffusion method, while bioactivity was assessed through SBF immersion tests. Results showed that Fe3O4 reduced both antibacterial activity and bioactivity, whereas ZrO2, particularly at 2 mol%, significantly enhanced these properties. Overall, ZrO2 addition improved the electrical and biological performance of 45S5 Bioglass®, while Fe3O4 showed limited benefits.
Keywords: Bioglass®, Zirconium, Iron, Bioactivity, Antibacterial activity, electrical properties, Bone Regeneration, Implant coatings
Received: 01 Dec 2024; Accepted: 17 Feb 2025.
Copyright: © 2025 Hammami, Graca, Gavinho, Regadas, Jakka, Padua, Silva, Sá Nogueira and Borges. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
* Correspondence:
Manuel Pedro Graca, University of Aveiro, Aveiro, Portugal
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