Comparison of in vitro and in vivo bioactivity: cuttlefish-bone-derived hydroxyapatite and synthetic hydroxyapatite granules as a bone graft substitute

Bone reconstruction in clinical settings often requires bone substitutes. Hydroxyapatite (HAp) is a widely used bone substitute due to its osteoconductive properties and bone bonding ability. The aim of this study was to evaluate HAp granules derived from cuttlefish bone (CB-HAp) as a substitute biomaterial for bone grafts. In this study, HAp granules were prepared from raw CB by using a hydrothermal reaction. The formation of HAp from CB was confirmed by scanning electron microscopy and x-ray diffraction analysis. The bioactivity of the CB-HAp granules was evaluated both in vitro and in vivo. Our results show that CB-HAp is non-toxic and that CB-HAp granules supported improved cell adhesion, proliferation and differentiation compared to stoichiometric synthetic HAp granules. Furthermore, in vivo bone defect healing experiments show that the formation of bone with CB-HAp is higher than that with pure HAp. These results show that CB-HAp granules have excellent potential for use as a bone graft material.