The influence of 3-glycidyloxypropyl trimethoxysilane on the rheological and in-vitro behavior of injectable composites containing 64S bioactive glass,chitosan, and gelatin

The effect of cross-linker 3-glycidyloxypropyl trimethoxysilane (GPTMS) on the injectability, bioactivity, rheology, washout resistance, and cellular behavior of bio-nano composite pastes containing a sol–gel derived bioactive glass (BG), chitosan (Cn), and gelatin (Gel), were studied. The results indicated that the structural integrity of the samples in the stimulated body fluid (SBF) was improved from 80% to 90% with the increase in the GPTMS content. In addition, the viscosity and injectability of the paste were affected, so that the later changed from 96% to 73% and the former changed from 132 × 10³ to 210 × 10³ Pa.s, with addition of 20 wt% GPTMS. Furthermore, the bioactivity of the pastes was improved with the use of GPTMS. No toxicity was observed in the cellular studies of the GPTMS containing paste after 7 days, and the cells kept their shape and were attached firmly to the paste surface. The results of the present work showed that the use of GPTMS was beneficial in enhancing the properties of injectable paste.