MODIFICATION OF Ti–6Al–4V ALLOYS FOR DENTAL IMPLANT AND ITS CAPACITY TO GROW HUMAN OSTEOBLAST ATCC

Modification of Ti–6Al–4V alloys with silver-loaded TiO2 nanotubes was investigated. In this study, TiO2 nanotube (TiNT) was grown on the surface of Ti–6Al–4V plates by means of anodization in an electrolyte solution containing glycerol, water and 0.5[Formula: see text]wt.% of NH4F. Silver particles were deposited on TiNT using a Photo-Assisted Deposition (PAD) method. Formation of crystalline phase of TiO2 on the surface was confirmed by means of XRD while its superficial morphology was observed using FESEM/EDS. Hydrophilicity was assessed by means of contact angle measurement. As-synthesized silver-loaded TiNT on osteoblast ATCC growth in vitro was also investigated in terms of its capacity in supporting osseointegration. The cell viability was determined by MTT (3-[4,5-dimethylthiazol-2yl]-2,5diphenyl-2H-tetrazolium bromide) assay and its differentiation activity was measured by alkaline phosphatase (ALP) assay. The results showed that desposition of silver on TiNT increased cell viability after 14 days culture while improving the hydrophilicity feature. Silver-loaded TiNT on Ti–6Al–4V alloy with Ag precursor concentration of 0.10[Formula: see text]M showed the optimum viability of osteoblast growth, with 14% improvement in comparison to its unmodified counterpart. The MTT assay showed that no cytotoxicity in vitro was observed on this material. This study provides corroborating evidences that the modification of Ti–6Al–4V alloy may enhance the cell viability and its prominence as dental implant materials.