published_or_final_version / Orthopaedics and Traumatology / Master / Master of Philosophy

"Modeling and Simulation of Oxidative Degradation of UHMWPE is studied in details.UHMWPE is commonly used in knee replacements or total hip replacements."

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Osseointegration, or the direct integration of an implant into bone tissue, is necessary for implant success. Titanium is commonly used clinically in dental and orthopaedic implants because of its passivating oxide layer, which facilitates osseointegration, and its mechanical properties such as a modulus of elasticity similar to bone. Diverse studies have shown that surface microtopography, chemistry, and surface energy affect osteoblast behavior. The problem with these studies is that they access the average behavior of a culture in response to a substrate and not the behavior of individual cells. The objective of this study was to develop a method for correlating the behavior of individual cells with the characteristics of the surface underneath them. More specifically, this work developed a method to correlate integrin beta-1 (β1) expression with the surface characteristics under individual cells. Integrins are cell surface receptors that bind to specific proteins in the extracellular matrix adsorbed on the implant surface. Previous work has shown that expression of certain integrins is increased when osteoblasts on titanium substrates develop a more differentiated phenotype, and that integrin β1 is necessary for osteoblast response to roughness on titanium substrates. This study used molecular beacons specific to integrin β1 to quantify integrin β1 expression of MG63 cells cultured on titanium disks. A template was designed to coordinate the location of cells using fluorescence microscopy and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) in reference to laser etchings on the disks. After live cell imaging, cells were fixed, dried, and critical point dried for focused ion beam (FIB) milling. Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) sections of cells identified with high and low integrin β1 molecular beacon intensity were milled, and cells with high and low integrin β1 molecular beacon intensity were also serial sectioned. While our TEM results were inconclusive, SEM images from serial sectioning showed contact points between the cell body and the substrate, consistent with previous results. Cells cultured on pretreatment (PT) or sandblasted acid etched (SLA) titanium surfaces were also serial sectioned, showing that cells on SLA surfaces have more regions of contact between the cells and the substrate than cells on PT surfaces. This work is significant as it is the first study to develop a method to correlate individual cell behavior with the substrate surface characteristics under the individual cells. Previous studies have reported the average cell behavior in response to their substrates, while this work allows for the study of substrate surface characteristics that positively affect integrin β1 expression in individual cells. Further optimization of the fluorescence imaging process and FIB milling process could be done, and the method developed in this study could be used in future studies to investigate surface characteristics after using other fluorescent analyses of cell behavior, such as immunocytochemistry.

Thesis (M.S. in M.S.E.)--School of Materials Science and Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology, 2004. Directed by Rober Narayan. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 85-92).

Thesis (M. Phil.)--University of Hong Kong, 2010. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 97-108). Also available in print.

Polyetheretherketone (PEEK), a polymer with mechanical strength comparable to human bone, is gaining popularity in the orthopedic field because it can potentially relieve the clinical complications, such as stress shielding effect and inevitable implantation failure, which are caused by the mismatch of the mechanical strength between the current metallic implants and the implantation sites. However, it is bio-inert and requires supplementary modification. Plasma immersion ion implantation (PIII) has been well documented that it is a good way to improve the bioactivity of a biomaterial. It is a method that introduces new elements to the biomaterial, generating bio-functional groups on the material surface without altering its mechanical properties. Hence, the aim of this study is to improve the bioactivity of PEEK by modifying its surface chemistry with the use of water (H2O) and ammonia (NH3) plasma immersion ion implantation (PIII) without altering its mechanical properties. After PIII treatment, a series of surface characterization tests that provide information about the surface properties, such as surface energy, roughness, surface chemical composition and crystallinity of PIII-treated PEEK were carried out. Results show that both H2O PIII and NH3 PIII-treated PEEK had significantly higher surface energy and roughness than untreated PEEK. There was also no significant change in the crystallinity of the PIII-treated PEEK, indicating that PIII treatment will not alter the mechanical properties of PEEK. Improvement in wetting properties of PEEK samples suggest the formation of polar functional groups on the PIII-treated PEEK materials, while the increased in surface roughness may be due to the energetic bombardments of plasma ions on the material surface. The in vitro bioactivity of plasma-treated PEEK was investigated and confirmed with hMSC-TERT. Initial cell attachment, cell spreading area, cell proliferation and differentiation were studied. Cell adhesion and cell spreading were enhanced on PIII-treated PEEK, and higher cell viability was observed on PIII-treated PEEK. Moreover, cell proliferation was promoted on early time point and cell differentiation was also enhanced particularly on day 7 by measuring the alkaline phosphatase activity. Therefore, H2O-PIII and NH3-PIII treatments were able to promote the bioactivity of PEEK samples. / published_or_final_version / Orthopaedics and Traumatology / Master / Master of Philosophy

Bibliography: leaves 198-219. / xii, 219 leaves : ill. (chiefly col.) ; 30 cm. / Title page, contents and abstract only. The complete thesis in print form is available from the University Library. / Examines the effect of implant design on the femoral bone remodelling response in a sheep cemented hip arthroplasty model. The clinical section of the thesis also indicates the importance of biological factors in the femoral bone remodelling response. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--University of Adelaide, Dept. of Orthopaedics and Trauma, 1998

[Truncated abstract] Unicondylar knee arthroplasty (UKA) has re-emerged as a successful treatment option for isolated single compartment tibio-femoral joint osteoarthritis. However despite its increasing use, controversy still remains over fixed or mobile bearing tibial components, as there is a lack to prospective randomised studies reported in the literature. In addition, the theoretical advantages of the mobile bearing for knee kinematics, kinetics and clinical outcome have not been evaluated in vivo. The aim of this research study was to explore the clinical and biomechanical outcomes of the fixed and mobile bearing UKA. . . . When the results for the both studies were combined, utilising the Preservation and MG fixed bearing prostheses, there was a significant relationship between knee adduction moment, and a poor prognosis predicted from RSA. Those patients with translation or rotation of the tibial component in any direction above 1mm and 1.5 degrees respectively were considered to have a poor prognosis for long term fixation. Of the 28 patients, the 8 patients considered to have a poor prognosis, had increased knee adduction moments post-surgery (mean difference = 1.66Nm.kg-1, p = 0.007). There was no difference between the groups for knee flexion moment (mean difference 0.16Nm.kg-1, p = 0.844). Pre-surgery gait was unable to predict the post-surgery outcome, due to the significant changes in gait from pre- to post-surgery. Care must taken when implanting the Preservation mobile bearing prosthesis, as long term outcome is questionable. The mobile bearing prosthesis also produced the worst clinical outcome, however the theoretical advantages of the mobile bearing does not affect gait. Gait analysis is a useful tool to identify patient who are overloading their prosthesis, leading to potential early failure. Identification of these gait patterns can allow for early intervention to reduce joint load, and possible extend the longevity of the prosthesis.

Thesis (Ph.D.)--University of Adelaide, Dept. of Orhtopaedics and Trauma, 1998. / Bibliography: leaves 198-219.