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In this paper, we suggest that the atmospheric pressure plasma treatment of pure titanium metal may be useful for improving the ability of rat bone marrow cells (RBMCs) to induce hard tissue differentiation. Previous studies have reported that the use of argon gas induces a higher degree of hard tissue formation. Therefore, this study compares the effects of plasma treatment with argon gas on the initial adhesion ability and hard tissue differentiation-inducing ability of RBMCs. A commercially available titanium metal plate was used as the experimental material. A plate polished using water-resistant abrasive paper #1500 was used as the control, and a plate irradiated with argon mixed with atmospheric pressure plasma was used as the experimental plate. No structural change was observed on the surface of the titanium metal plate in the scanning electron microscopy results, and no change in the surface roughness was observed via scanning probe microscopy. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy showed a decrease in the carbon peak and the formation of hydroxide in the experimental group. In the distilled water drop test, a significant decrease in the contact angle was observed for the experimental group, and the results indicated superhydrophilicity. Furthermore, the bovine serum albumin adsorption, initial adhesion of RBMCs, alkaline phosphatase activity, calcium deposition, and genetic marker expression of rat bone marrow cells were higher in the experimental group than those in the control group at all time points. Rat distal femur model are used as in vivo model. Additionally, microcomputed tomography analysis showed significantly higher results for the experimental group, indicating a large amount of the formed hard tissue. Histopathological evaluation also confirmed the presence of a prominent newly formed bone seen in the images of the experimental group. These results indicate that the atmospheric pressure plasma treatment with argon gas imparts superhydrophilicity, without changing the properties of the pure titanium plate surface. It was also clarified that it affects the initial adhesion of bone marrow cells and the induction of hard tissue differentiation.

Ingredients and surface modification methods are being continually developed to improve osseointegration of dental implants and reduce healing times. In this study, we demonstrate in vitro that, by applying concentrated alkali treatment to NANOZR with strong bending strength and fracture toughness, a significant improvement in the bone differentiation of rat bone marrow cells can be achieved. We investigated the influence of materials modified with this treatment in vivo, on implanted surrounding tissues using polychrome sequential fluorescent labeling and micro-computer tomography scanning. NANOZR implant screws in the alkali-treated group and the untreated group were evaluated after implantation in the femur of Sprague⁻Dawley male rats, indicating that the amount of new bone in the alkali-modified NANOZR was higher than that of unmodified NANOZR. Alkali-modified NANOZR implants proved to be useful for the creation of new implant materials.

Early osseointegration is important to achieve initial stability after implant placement. We have previously reported that atmospheric-pressure plasma treatment confers superhydrophilicity to titanium. Herein, we examined the effects of titanium implant material, which was conferred superhydrophilicity by atmospheric-pressure plasma treatment, on the surrounding tissue in rat femur. Control and experimental groups included untreated screws and those irradiated with atmospheric-pressure plasma using piezobrush, respectively. The femurs of 8-week-old male Sprague-Dawley rats were used for in vivo experiments. Various data prepared from the Micro-CT analysis showed results showing that more new bone was formed in the test group than in the control group. Similar results were shown in histological analysis. Thus, titanium screw, treated with atmospheric-pressure plasma, could induce high hard tissue differentiation even at the in vivo level. This method may be useful to achieve initial stability after implant placement. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]