Electrical conductive carbon nanotubes-based bone grafts in orthopaedics

摘要

Bone tissue has the ability to generate endogenous electric signals that affect its repair mechanisms. Numerous methods have been developed to apply exogenous electrical fields to accelerate bone healing. Though, all have critical shortcomings. The use of electrical conductive bone grafts could be a new approach to confine the applied electrical fields through the material and control the regeneration rate of bone in situ. Regrettably, most of the bone grafts applied in orthopaedic are not conductive or others are, but when using metallic phases. Under electrical stimulus, metals must be avoided due to the induced oxidative stress in cells. A new composite material of a bioceramic and multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) becomes an interesting solution to fulfill this need due to their proved bioactivity and high electrical conductivity.