Sol-gel derived bioactive glasses containing boron and strontium: bioactivity, biocompatibility, and antibacterial properties

This study was aimed at the biological characterization of bioactive glasses in the systems of (60-x) SiO₂–36CaO–4P₂O₅–xB₂O₃, and (60-x) SiO₂–31CaO–4P₂O₅–5SrO-xB₂O₃ (x = 0, 1, 5, 10 and 15 mol%) synthesized through sol-gel technique. The influence of boron and strontium addition on in vivo bioactivity, antibacterial efficiency, and cell viability was studied. The morphological and structural assessments indicated that the bioactive glasses with chemical compositions of 50SiO₂–31CaO–4P₂O₅–5SrO-10B₂O₃ (BG-5S10B), and 45SiO₂–31CaO–4P₂O₅–5SrO-15B₂O₃ (BG-5S15B) possessed the highest bioactivity, owing to faster ion release and superior ability to induce apatite precipitation. The findings of the cell viability assay highlighted significant improvements in the proliferation and differentiation of osteoblastic MC3T3-E1 cells through the incorporation of strontium and boron (up to 10 %). Notably, the BG-5S10B sample exhibited exceptional biocompatibility and substantial antibacterial effectiveness on both E. coli and S. aureus. A combination of favorable biological properties makes BG-5S10B a highly promising option for use in bone tissue engineering applications.