Identifier

etd-04022015-095919

Degree

Master of Science in Biological and Agricultural Engineering (MSBAE)

Department

Biological and Agricultural Engineering

Document Type

Thesis

Abstract

ABSTRACT As life expectancies rise and the average age of our population increases, there has emerged a growing need for joint repair and replacement surgeries due to worn out, torn, or damaged cartilage and bone tissue. This has resulted in an escalating demand for further development of the materials used in joint replacement surgeries and advances in joint repair technology. Researchers in the tissue engineering and regenerative medicine fields have furthered the development of advanced materials for musculoskeletal repair by utilizing growth factors, nanomaterials, and antibiotics within the repair material. The first aim of this thesis was to provide a summary of the current literature on advances in joint repair materials. While there have been many advances utilizing calcium phosphates to aid in bone regeneration; calcium phosphates now just represent a single ingredient within the state-of-the-art complex biomaterials for joint repair. These combination materials can achieve up-regulation of osteogenesis within the wound site. Furthermore, as the advances in nanofabrication have branched to most fields of science and engineering, the development of complex nanocomposites has become a common strategy for resolving difficult multi-tissue repair problems. The development of this class of bioactive, biomaterial nanocomposites is reviewed within today’s current literature. The second aim of this thesis was to construct a new biomaterial aiding in joint repair. By utilizing thermally initiated frontal polymerization, a bioactive, degradable bone augment was constructed that would provide orthopedic surgeons a material with an extended working time, good mechanical stability, and potentially osteoconductive and osteoinductive activity. Four ratios of monomers were explored in an effort to optimize the mechanical properties, chemical stability and cytocompatibility. The ratio of 5:1 acrylate monomer to thiol monomer provided the best overall material characteristics: high cytocompatibility, compressive mechanical strength of 3.65 MPa, and a maximum propagation temperature of 160°C +/- 10°C.

Date

2015

Document Availability at the Time of Submission

Release the entire work immediately for access worldwide.

Committee Chair

Hayes, Daniel

DOI

10.31390/gradschool_theses.1314

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