Contents lists available at ScienceDirect Ceramics International journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/ceramint Vitroceramic coatings deposited by laser ablation on Ti-Zr substrates for implantable medical applications with improved biocompatibility C. Busuioc a , G. Voicu a , I.D. Zuzu a , D. Miu b , C. Sima b , F. Iordache c , S.I. Jinga a, ⁎ a University POLITEHNICA of Bucharest, RO-011061 Bucharest, Romania b National Institute for Laser, Plasma and Radiation Physics, RO-077125 Magurele, Romania c “Nicolae Simionescu” Institute of Cellular Biology and Pathology, RO-050568 Bucharest, Romania ARTICLE INFO Keywords: Vitroceramics Biocompatible coatings Pulsed laser deposition Implants ABSTRACT The influence of vitroceramic coatings deposited onto Ti-Zr alloy plates on the biological properties of the final biomaterials was investigated. In this regard, two vitroceramic masses, different from compositional point of view, were synthesized by a sol-gel route, being subsequently converted into ceramic targets, suitable for ablation experiments. The film depositions were conducted in oxidative atmosphere, on substrates heated at 300 or 400 °C. The coated samples were characterized by X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy coupled with selected area diffraction and energy-dispersive X-ray spectro- scopy, contact angle measurements and in vitro biological analyses (MTT cell proliferation assay, GSH oxidative stress assay, optical and fluorescence microscopy). All results sustained the applicative potential of Ti-Zr alloy substrates covered with a thin vitroceramic layer for medical implant applications. 1. Introduction Concerns for the restoration of damaged or lost parts of living bodies have always existed, the first attempt consisting in the recon- struction of lost teeth using gold dental prostheses [1]. Since then, the biomaterials science has continuously evolved to higher performances, newer techniques and a better understanding of the interactions that take place between the implantable materials and surrounding tissues [2–5]. Thus, the biocompatibility is the main requirement that a synthetic material must meet before being subjected to perform a specific function in a physiological media [6,7]. However, in recent years, the bioactivity property has gained ground due to the fact that the corresponding materials favour or even induce tissue regeneration and obviously accelerate the healing process [8,9]. Over time, metals such as Fe, Cr, Co, Ni, Ti, Ta, Nb, Mo and W were well and rapidly tolerated by the patients as inert materials for bone substitution, especially in dentistry and orthopaedics [10]. Furthermore, they exhibit desirable mechanical properties (excellent moldability, increased hardness, ductility and tenacity, great wear resistance etc.) [11,12], fact that makes them the most common materials for orthopaedic implants. Still, there are some problems regarding the maximum accepted concentration of some metallic elements, difference in stiffness against the living tissues or adverse reactions occurrence [13–15]. The metallic biomaterials are classified by their nature in three main groups: stainless steel, Co alloys and Ti with its alloys [16]. Ti stands out by having a high corrosion resistance due to the formation of a titanium oxide layer on its surface, which speeds up the process of bone-to-implant adhesion without unwanted side effects [17]. The disadvantages of Ti (low wear resistance, difficult manufacturing process etc.) have been solved through its alloys, that have found applications as dental pivots, orthopaedic screws, skull plates etc. [11,18,19]. In the particular case of Ti-Zr material, all studies have shown good osseointegration and high implant success rate [20,21]. The biocompatibility of metallic surfaces poses a major problem because of their possible corrosion in hostile environment, with undesirable effects, like material loss, strength weakening, damaging surrounding tissue, overall a toxic character. In order to overcome these impediments, the metallic implants can be coated with a bioactive layer [22–25], by different techniques: magnetron sputtering, laser ablation, electrophoretic deposition or chemical methods (im- pregnation, vapour deposition etc.) [22,26–30]. Thus, to avoid clinical problems (weak interface, corrosion, allergy, inflammation, infection, rejection etc.) and also to make the metallic implants more biocompa- tible, researchers and producers have coated pure Ti and its alloys with a bioactive layer, which can have different natures: glasses [31,32], ceramics [9,11,19,23,26,27,30] or glass-ceramics [22,33]. Moreover, apart from the surface layer composition, an important issue is http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.ceramint.2017.01.070 Received 21 November 2016; Received in revised form 2 January 2017; Accepted 13 January 2017 ⁎ Corresponding author. E-mail address: sorinionjinga@yahoo.com (S.I. Jinga). Ceramics International (xxxx) xxxx–xxxx 0272-8842/ © 2017 Elsevier Ltd and Techna Group S.r.l. All rights reserved. Please cite this article as: Busuioc, C., Ceramics International (2017), http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.ceramint.2017.01.070