Early new bone formation in ovine intramuscular defects: comparison between different silicate-containing calcium phosphate synthetic bone grafts

Abstract Background The property of in vivo osteoinductivity (OI) has been reported in synthetic calcium phosphates bone grafts, including silicate-containing calcium phosphates in different animal intramuscular defect models. However, most studies that have evaluated osteoinductivity in these model...

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Main Authors: Iain R. Gibson, Viviana R. Lopes, Rema Oliver, Tian Wang, Dan Wills, Tom Buckland, William R. Walsh
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: BMC 2025-04-01
Series:Journal of Orthopaedic Surgery and Research
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Online Access:https://doi.org/10.1186/s13018-025-05740-0
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author Iain R. Gibson
Viviana R. Lopes
Rema Oliver
Tian Wang
Dan Wills
Tom Buckland
William R. Walsh
author_facet Iain R. Gibson
Viviana R. Lopes
Rema Oliver
Tian Wang
Dan Wills
Tom Buckland
William R. Walsh
author_sort Iain R. Gibson
collection DOAJ
description Abstract Background The property of in vivo osteoinductivity (OI) has been reported in synthetic calcium phosphates bone grafts, including silicate-containing calcium phosphates in different animal intramuscular defect models. However, most studies that have evaluated osteoinductivity in these models only focus on the formation of new bone at only one endpoint, typically 12 weeks, and without reporting evidence of graft resorption. Methods Three clinically available silicate-containing calcium phosphate bone graft substitutes were characterised and then implanted into an ovine intramuscular defect model for 6 or 12 weeks to assess their bone forming potential. Bone formation was evaluated with radiographs, micro-CT (µCT) and qualitative histology. Result The main physical/chemical differences between the three materials were the morphology and surface areas of the graft materials, but also the form that the silicate was incorporated. One of the bone grafts with a nano-scale microstructure (nano-Si-Ap) resulted in significant new bone formation that was sufficient to bridge between granules after 6 weeks which progressed further after 12 weeks implantation, and evidence of graft resorption/remodelling was observed at both time points. The other nano-scale bone graft (nano-SiO2-HA) showed a more limited quantity of new bone formation at 6 and 12 weeks and did not show evidence of resorption/remodelling. The bone graft with a micron-scale microstructure and low surface area (micro-Si-CaP) exhibited very limited evidence of new bone formation or resorption at either time points. Conclusions Implantation in ovine intramuscular defects was found to be an effective model to differentiate the relative bone forming potential of three silicate calcium phosphate bone grafts, particularly using a short implantation time of only 6 weeks. Positive outcomes in such a pre-clinical model when evaluating synthetic bone graft substitutes may be clinically relevant to their potential use in challenging bone defects.
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spelling doaj-art-0bc48e834d2d444eb09252cc3be30fd02025-08-20T03:06:50ZengBMCJournal of Orthopaedic Surgery and Research1749-799X2025-04-0120111410.1186/s13018-025-05740-0Early new bone formation in ovine intramuscular defects: comparison between different silicate-containing calcium phosphate synthetic bone graftsIain R. Gibson0Viviana R. Lopes1Rema Oliver2Tian Wang3Dan Wills4Tom Buckland5William R. Walsh6Institute of Medical Sciences, School of Medicine, Medical Sciences and Nutrition, University of AberdeenOssDsign ABSurgical and Orthopaedic Research Laboratories, Prince of Wales Clinical School, UNSW SydneySurgical and Orthopaedic Research Laboratories, Prince of Wales Clinical School, UNSW SydneySurgical and Orthopaedic Research Laboratories, Prince of Wales Clinical School, UNSW SydneyOssDsign ABSurgical and Orthopaedic Research Laboratories, Prince of Wales Clinical School, UNSW SydneyAbstract Background The property of in vivo osteoinductivity (OI) has been reported in synthetic calcium phosphates bone grafts, including silicate-containing calcium phosphates in different animal intramuscular defect models. However, most studies that have evaluated osteoinductivity in these models only focus on the formation of new bone at only one endpoint, typically 12 weeks, and without reporting evidence of graft resorption. Methods Three clinically available silicate-containing calcium phosphate bone graft substitutes were characterised and then implanted into an ovine intramuscular defect model for 6 or 12 weeks to assess their bone forming potential. Bone formation was evaluated with radiographs, micro-CT (µCT) and qualitative histology. Result The main physical/chemical differences between the three materials were the morphology and surface areas of the graft materials, but also the form that the silicate was incorporated. One of the bone grafts with a nano-scale microstructure (nano-Si-Ap) resulted in significant new bone formation that was sufficient to bridge between granules after 6 weeks which progressed further after 12 weeks implantation, and evidence of graft resorption/remodelling was observed at both time points. The other nano-scale bone graft (nano-SiO2-HA) showed a more limited quantity of new bone formation at 6 and 12 weeks and did not show evidence of resorption/remodelling. The bone graft with a micron-scale microstructure and low surface area (micro-Si-CaP) exhibited very limited evidence of new bone formation or resorption at either time points. Conclusions Implantation in ovine intramuscular defects was found to be an effective model to differentiate the relative bone forming potential of three silicate calcium phosphate bone grafts, particularly using a short implantation time of only 6 weeks. Positive outcomes in such a pre-clinical model when evaluating synthetic bone graft substitutes may be clinically relevant to their potential use in challenging bone defects.https://doi.org/10.1186/s13018-025-05740-0Synthetic bone graftOsteoinductionSilicateApatitesNanoscaleBone formation
spellingShingle Iain R. Gibson
Viviana R. Lopes
Rema Oliver
Tian Wang
Dan Wills
Tom Buckland
William R. Walsh
Early new bone formation in ovine intramuscular defects: comparison between different silicate-containing calcium phosphate synthetic bone grafts
Journal of Orthopaedic Surgery and Research
Synthetic bone graft
Osteoinduction
Silicate
Apatites
Nanoscale
Bone formation
title Early new bone formation in ovine intramuscular defects: comparison between different silicate-containing calcium phosphate synthetic bone grafts
title_full Early new bone formation in ovine intramuscular defects: comparison between different silicate-containing calcium phosphate synthetic bone grafts
title_fullStr Early new bone formation in ovine intramuscular defects: comparison between different silicate-containing calcium phosphate synthetic bone grafts
title_full_unstemmed Early new bone formation in ovine intramuscular defects: comparison between different silicate-containing calcium phosphate synthetic bone grafts
title_short Early new bone formation in ovine intramuscular defects: comparison between different silicate-containing calcium phosphate synthetic bone grafts
title_sort early new bone formation in ovine intramuscular defects comparison between different silicate containing calcium phosphate synthetic bone grafts
topic Synthetic bone graft
Osteoinduction
Silicate
Apatites
Nanoscale
Bone formation
url https://doi.org/10.1186/s13018-025-05740-0
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