Recent Developments in Engineered Magnesium Scaffolds for Bone Tissue Engineering

Significantattention has been drawn in recent years to developporous scaffolds for tissue engineering. In general, porous scaffoldsare used for non-load bearing applications. However, various metallicscaffolds have been investigated extensively for hard tissue repairdue to their favorable mechanical and biological properties. Stainlesssteel (316L) and titanium (Ti) alloys are the most commonly used materialfor metallic scaffolds. Although stainless steel and Ti alloys areemployed as scaffold materials, it might result in complications suchas stress shielding, local irritation, interference with radiography,etc. related to the permanent implants. To address the above-mentionedcomplications, degradable metallic scaffolds have emerged as a nextgeneration material. Among the all metallic degradable scaffold materials,magnesium (Mg) based material has gained significant attention owingto its advantageous mechanical properties and excellent biocompatibilityin a physiological environment. Therefore, Mg based materials canbe projected as load bearing degradable scaffolds, which can providestructural support toward the defected hard tissue during the healingperiod. Moreover, advanced manufacturing techniques such as solventcast 3D printing, negative salt pattern molding, laser perforation,and surface modifications can make Mg based scaffolds promising forhard tissue repair. In this article, we focus on the advanced fabricationtechniques which can tune the porosity of the degradable Mg basedscaffold favorably and improve its biocompatibility.