Effect of bioactive glass coating on cell viability of zirconia surface

Objectives: The objective of this study was to investigate the effect of cell viability of a zirconia surface coated by bioactive glass (BG) using a sol-gel method.
Methods: The zirconia plate was made by 1 ton biaxial pressing of 0.6 g of the TZ-3Y-E powder. The pressed discs were sintered at 1400°C for 1 hour. The 45s5 BG sol made by sol–gel method using mixing of nitric acid, tetraethyl orthosilicate (TEOS), triethylphosphate (TEP), calcium nitrate tetrahydrate and sodium nitrate. The zirconia discs were coated by BG sol and sintered at 1200 °C for 1 hour to cover the surface. MC3T3-E1 osteoblast cells line was used to evaluate cell morphology and MTS assay was used for cell viability test. The data were analyzed using a two-way ANOVA (p<0.05).
Results: Strongly adhered bioactive glass with homogeneous and thin layer was successfully coated on the zirconia by dipping the substrates into the bioactive glass sol and sintering at 1200°C for 1 hour. There was a significant correlation between the type of sample and cell viability after 6 days culture. Bioactive glass coated zirconia substrate showed significantly higher cell viability after 6 days compared to untreated zirconia.
Conclusions: Strongly adhered bioactive glass coating layer with high cell viability was obtained on the zirconia surface.