Characterization and In Vitro Studies of Sulfonated Polyether Ether Ketone/Polyether Sulfone/Nano Hydroxyapatite Composite

Sulfonated polyether ether ketone (SPEEK)/polyether sulfone (PES)/nano hydroxyapatite (nHAP) composites were prepared with different nHAP filler concentrations. FTIR analysis confirmed the blend formation between SPEEK and PES. Surface morphology pictures showed agglomeration of the nHAP particles at higher percentage of loading. Evaluation of the tensile property showed that composites with 4 and 6wt% of nHAP displayed the maximum tensile strength. The in vitro drug release study, performed with amoxicillin, indicated that these composites retained slightly less than 50% of the initial drug loaded. The in vitro bioactivity was observed to increase with increase in filler concentrations. The in vitro cytotoxicity test performed using osteoblast like cells (MG 63 cell line) by MTT method suggested that the composite having 6wt% of filler loading was the most favourable. The results of the study show that these composites could be used for filling of orthopedic defects in non-load-bearing areas of bone. [GRAPHICS]