ACS Appl Mater. Interfaces.2020. Doi/10.1021

聚醚醚酮（PEEK）是一种广泛用于各种工程应用中的热塑性材料，因为其在高温下优异的机械性能和稳定性。PEEK是跨各种硬组织植入物的标准生物材料，包括人造膝关节,脊柱，颅骨等。然而，它缺乏生物活性仍然是其骨科应用中的主要限制。为了改善Peek植入物的生物活性，研究人员将各种生物活性纳米材料嵌入，如羟基磷灰石和二氧化钛。然而，复合材料的高粘度导致了大型熔体处理中的额外挑战，并且陶瓷的增强材料可以在较高浓度下容易地附聚，这可能会损害复合材料的结构完整性并导致损害的应力集中。考虑到这一限制，近几十年来出现了各种PEEK表面性技术，旨在保留PEEK的优秀的机械性能。石墨烯（G）SP2碳杂交的2D纳米材料，具有高电导率与优越的机械性能（按TPA20的量的模量）的巨大优点。其独特的多功能性也使其在生物传感器中的广泛应用。这种特征可以促进电刺激来调节和支持骨细胞和神经细胞的生长。其已经利用在包括心脏和神经组织工程的再生中。此外，G具有高光热转化效率，可用于癌症光热疗和消除耐药细菌。基于G的独特性质，假设将G纳米片添加到PEEK中可能导致纳米复合材料可取的生物力学性质和功能，可以部署用于骨骼修复的晚期矫形植入物以及某些与骨骼相关疾病的管理。

近日，研究团队设计开发了导电PEEK/G纳米复合材料，并利用电沉积技术，将抗菌的酯基三甲基氯-羟基磷灰石（STAC-HA）沉积到材料表面。复合材料的优异导电性也允许在复杂的3D印刷支架结构上进行多功能涂层沉积。涂覆的复合材料表现出显着的性质，包括改善的机械性能，增强的骨髓间充质干细胞（BMSC）增殖和分化，以及近红外激光（NIR）照射下的强烈的光热转换效果。该材料的独特光热性能也成功地证明了肿瘤抑制和细菌。植入物提供的理想材料组合和优异的特征是骨再生以及骨肉瘤和骨髓炎的潜在应用，这些应用通常与大的骨缺损，疾病复发（由于残留的癌细胞或细菌）以及后期感染有关。

Polyetheretherketone (PEEK) is a thermoplastic material widely used in various engineering applications because of its excellent mechanical properties and stability at high temperatures. PEEK is a standard biomaterial for implants across various hard tissues, including artificial knee joints, spine, skull, etc. However, its lack of biological activity is still the main limitation in its orthopedic applications. In order to improve the biological activity of Peek implants, the researchers embedded various bioactive nanomaterials, such as hydroxyapatite and titanium dioxide. However, the high viscosity of the composite material leads to additional challenges in large-scale melt processing, and the ceramic reinforcement can easily agglomerate at higher concentrations, which may damage the structural integrity of the composite material and lead to damaging stress concentration . Considering this limitation, various PEEK surface technologies have emerged in recent decades, aiming to retain the excellent mechanical properties of PEEK. Graphene (G) SP2 carbon hybrid 2D nanomaterials have great advantages of high electrical conductivity and superior mechanical properties (modulus based on the amount of TPA20). Its unique versatility also makes it widely used in biosensors. This feature can promote electrical stimulation to regulate and support the growth of bone cells and nerve cells. It has been used in regeneration including heart and nerve tissue engineering. In addition, G has high photothermal conversion efficiency and can be used for cancer photothermal therapy and eliminate drug-resistant bacteria. Based on the unique properties of G, it is hypothesized that the addition of G nanosheets to PEEK may lead to the desirable biomechanical properties and functions of nanocomposites, which can be deployed for advanced orthopedic implants for bone repair and the management of certain bone-related diseases.

Recently, research team designed and developed conductive PEEK/Gn a n o c o m p o s i t e sw i t ha ne l e c trophoretically deposited bioactive, antibacterial stearyltrimethylammonium chloride-hydroxyapatite (STAC-HA) coating. The excellent electrical conductivity of the composite also allows for versatile coating deposition on complex 3D-printed scaffold structures.The coated composites demonstrated remarkable properties including improved bulk mechanical properties, enhanced bone marrow mesenchymal stem cell (BMSC) proliferation and osteointegration, and antibacterial properties as well as a strong photothermal conversion effect under near infrared laser (NIR) irradiation. The material’s unique photothermal property has also been demonstrated successfully for tumor inhibition and bacteria eradication. The ideal material combination and excellent features offered by our implant are desirable for bone regeneration as well as potential applications in osteosarcoma and osteomyelitis, which are often associated with large bone defects, disease recurrence (because of residual cancer cells or bacteria), and postsurgery infection.

DOI:https://dx.doi.org/10.1021/acsami.0c20145

李永博