Sustained Release of Vitamin D3 Enhanced Osseointegration Capacity: An Experimental Sheep Study


Mutlu İ. O., ARISAN V., KARABUDA Z. C., SESSEVMEZ M., SALDAMLI E., Bekle G., ...More

Biointerface Research in Applied Chemistry, vol.12, no.6, pp.8205-8218, 2022 (Scopus) identifier

Abstract

Abstract: This study aimed to investigate the effect of sustained-release vitamin D loaded in poly-lactic

acid (PLA) nanoparticles and applied to grafting materials around titanium (ti) dental implants.

A total of 48 implants were inserted into the standardized bone defects created in the iliac crest of 6

sheep, divided into 4 different experimental sites (empty control, autografted, xenografted, and

autograft + xenografted). Vitamin D3, which was encapsulated by PLA nanoparticles, was prepared

and applied in half of the defects and left to heal for 3 and 6 weeks. New bone formation (NBF%) and

bone-implant contact (BIC%) values were evaluated by histologic and histomorphometric analyses (P

< 0.05). Nanoparticles with a yield of 80.30% ± 2.14% and high encapsulation efficiency of 72.99% ±

2.20% were achieved. In all sections, osseointegration was observed, with no signs of inflammation,

necrosis, or foreign body reaction. NBF% and BIC% were significantly higher in vitamin D3–loaded

groups (P < 0.001). In both healing periods, the highest NBF% and BIC% have been recorded in the

autograft + xenograft groups. (For the respective third and sixth weeks: the NBF% was 49.63 ± 1.53

and 74.25 ± 0.96, and BIC% was 54.26 ± 0.66 and 82.59 ± 2.09, respectively; P < 0.001). Sustainedrelease

of vitamin D loaded into the PLA system demonstrated high biocompatibility, favorable

sustained release of vitamin D3, and improved NBF% and BIC% around ti implants placed in boxshaped

sheep iliac crest defects. Further investigations are required for their clinical applicability.

Keywords: autograft; dental implant; osseointegration; poly-lactic acid; sustained release; vitamin D3;

xenograft.