Effect of copper oxide nanoparticles on electrical conductivity and cell viability of calcium phosphate scaffolds with improved mechanical strength for bone tissue engineering

.In the current study, bio-nanocomposites scaffolds including natural hydroxyapatite (n-HA) composed with different weight fractions of copper oxide nanoparticles (CuO-NPs) are fabricated using the space holder technique. After that, the manufactured samples are coated with gelatin polymer loaded with ibuprofen drug. Via experimental methods, the mechanical properties (fracture toughness and compressive strength) of n-HA-CuO bio-nanocomposite scaffolds are achieved corresponding to various weight fractions of the CuO-NPs. Also, the electrical conductivity and cell viability of the fabricated scaffolds are evaluated using the scan electron microscope (SEM) and X-ray diffraction (XRD) technique. Thereafter, based upon the extracted mechanical properties, nonlinear mechanical behaviors of beam-type implants made of the prepared n-HA-CuO bio-nanocomposites are predicted analytically. The cell viability and electrical conductivity evaluation demonstrate that on the free surface of all bio-nanocomposite scaffolds, there is a thin layer of apatite carbonate; however, the thickness of this layer in the sample containing 5wt% CuO-NPs is lower than other ones. It is seen that the adherence of ibuprofen's penetration into the gelatin polymer is weak which leads to two explosive release stages. For the lower weight fraction of CuO-NPs, the release of ibuprofen becomes significant.