Preliminary Evaluation of the in Vitro Biocompatibility of Magnetic Bone Cement Composites

Polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA) bone cement with the addition of magnetic glass-ceramic (MGC) has attracted much attention for the treatment of deep-seated tumour tissues. Since PMMA bone cement has been a gold standard in orthopaedic surgery and magnetic glass-ceramic can generate heat under a magnetic field, the combination of these two materials could show promising results for magnetic induction hyperthermia treatment.Thus, magnetic glass-ceramic powders were mixed with the commercial Palacos MV® cement in amounts up to 40 ​wt%. The resulted magnetic bone cement composites were assessed in vitro for bioactivity and cytocompatibility. In vitro bioactivity was evaluated using a simulated body fluid (SBF). The effect of magnetic cement composition on the viability of cancerous and normal (non-cancerous) cells was assessed using U2OS osteosarcoma and OBS human osteoblast cells, respectively. Cell attachment to the surface of the magnetic composite samples was observed using fluorescence and scanning electron microscopy.The magnetic composites showed bioactive properties. After two weeks of immersion in SBF, a non-uniform layer of hydroxyapatite was observed on their surface. Alamar blue cytotoxicity tests after 3 days in cell culture indicated that magnetic composites are cytotoxic for U2OS cancer cells, but they are cytocompatible to OBS normal cells.