Augmenting the Bioactivity of Polyetheretherketone

Background Polyetheretherketone (PEEK) may be advantageous as an alternative material to metal alloys in some orthopaedic applications. However, it is bioinert and does not osseointegrate1. A novel accelerated neutral atom beam technique (ANAB) has been developed to improve the bioactivity of PEEK where the surface is modified to a depth of 5 nm without affecting the integrity of the underlying PEEK structure2. Aim The aim of this study was to investigate the growth of human Mesenchymal Stem Cells (hMSCs), adult human Osteoblasts (hOB) and skin Fibroblasts (BR3G) on PEEK and ANAB treated PEEK. Materials and Methods The surface properties of PEEK and ANAB PEEK were characterized by measuring surface roughness and contact angle. Cells were seeded at a density of 10,000/cm2 on PEEK, ANAB PEEK and a Thermonox control. Cell proliferation, attachment, and alkaline phosphatase (ALP) activity on these surfaces was quantified at 7 and 14 days (n = 2). Cell attachment was measured by staining adhesion plaques with anti-vinculin and counting the number of plaques in cells at day 3. As the data was non parametric a Mann Whitney-U test was used to compare groups where p values Results ANAB treatment increased the hydrophilicity of the PEEK surface (91.74 ± 4.80° (PEEK) vs 74.82 ± 2.70° (ANAB PEEK), P Conclusion ANAB increased the bioactivity and enhanced the differentiation of osteoblasts on PEEK. This method may improve the osseointegration of PEEK implants. Acknowledgements ORUK Exogenesis