Nor Suriani Sani, Nik Ahmad Nizam Nik Malek, Ahmad Taufiq
Hydroxyapatite (HA) is extensively utilized in bone tissue engineering due to its osteoconductive properties and high biocompatibility; however, its inherent brittleness and low degradation rate significantly limit its effectiveness in promoting cell proliferation and integration within host tissues. To address these drawbacks, this study investigated hydroxyapatite-incorporated silica aerogels (HA-SA-Np) with a HA/SiO2 ratio 0.5, synthesized from rice husk ash via an aqueous sol-gel process. The aim was to evaluate the efficacy of HA-SA-Np in the proliferation and adhesion of normal human fibroblast (HSF 1184) and osteoblast (NHOst) cells in vitro. This was done by comparing with free HA and silica aerogel nanoparticles (SA-Np) based on MTT assays, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and energy-dispersive X-ray (EDX) analysis after incubation periods of 3, 5, 7, and 21 days. The results demonstrated that HA-SA-Np significantly enhanced cell proliferation and adhesion, and HA-SA-Np significantly outperformed both HA and SA-Np in supporting cell growth. This was attributed to the controlled release of silicic acid and the consumption of phosphate ions, which are critical for cellular growth. These findings suggested that HA-SA-Np has strong potential as an advanced biomaterial for tissue engineering, offering enhanced support for cell attachment, proliferation, and tissue formation compared to conventional HA and silica-based material. © The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2025.
Department of Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Research and Innovation), Universiti Teknologi Malaysia, UTM, Skudai, Johor, Johor Bahru, 81310, Malaysia; Department of Biosciences, Faculty of Science, Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (UTM), Johor, Johor Bahru, 81310, Malaysia; Centre for Sustainable Nanomaterials (CSNano), Ibnu Sina Institute for Scientific and Industrial Research (ISI-SIR), Universiti Teknologi Malaysia, UTM, Skudai, Johor, Johor Bahru, 81310, Malaysia; Department Physics, Mathematics and Natural Science Faculty, Universitas Negeri Malang, Malang, Indonesia
