Well-ordered mesoporous bioactive glasses (MBG): A promising bioactive drug delivery system

The local drug release system is considered to be an alternative to treat the bone infection. In this paper, well-ordered mesoporous bioactive glasses (MBG) with high specific surface area have been synthesized in aqueous solution by a two-step acid-catalyzed self-assembly process combined with hydrothermal treatment. Gentamicin was encapsulated into the MBG by adsorption method and in vitro release of gentamicin from MBG was performed in distilled water and modified simulated body fluid (SBF), respectively. The results showed that the amount of drug loading of MBG was three times more than that of conventional sol-gel 58S. The outcomes of drug release in distilled water and in SBF showed that M58S effectively decreased the initial burst. During the release period, gentamicin was released from the M58S at a much lower release rate as compared to that from 58S after soaking in distilled water and SBF. Furthermore, the drug release was sensitive to the pH and ionic concentration of the release medium suggesting possible controls of the release rate. In addition, in contrast to conventional sol-gel 58S, M58S had higher ability to induce hydroxyapatite (HAp) formation. Therefore, well-ordered mesoporous bioactive glasses might be used as a bioactive drug release system for preparation of bone implant materials. (C) 2005 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.