Multifunctional gallium doped bioactive glasses: a targeted delivery for antineoplastic agents and tissue repair against osteosarcoma.

Osteosarcoma is the mostly commonly occurring primary bone cancer. Despite comprehensive treatment programs including neoadjuvant chemotherapy and tumour resection, survival rates have not improved significantly since the 1970s. Survival rates are dramatically reduced for patients who suffer a local recurrence. Furthermore, primary bone cancer patients are at increased risk of bone fractures. Consequently, there is an urgent need for alternative treatment options. In this paper we report the development of novel gallium doped bioactive glass that selectively kill bone cancer cells whilst simultaneously stimulating new bone growth. Here we show, using a combination of MTT, LIVE/DEAD assays and image analysis, that bioactive glasses containing gallium oxide are highly toxic and reduce both the proliferation and migration of bone cancer cells (Saos-2) in a dose dependant manner. Glasses containing 5 mol% gallium oxide reduced the viability of osteosarcoma cells by 99% without being cytotoxic to the non-cancerous normal human osteoblasts (NHOst) control cells. Furthermore, FTIR and Energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy results confirmed the formation of an amorphous calcium phosphate / hydroxy apatite layer on the surface of the bioactive glass particulates, after 7 days incubating in simulated body fluid, indicating the early stages of bone formation. These materials show significant potential for use in bone cancer applications as part of a multimodal treatment.&#xD.