Injectable hydrogel-mesoporous bioactive glass systems to deliver in situ therapeutic species for bone application

Mesoporous bioactive glasses (MBGs) have been extensively studied for bone applications. Their high surface area and tunable pore size allow the incorporation of therapeutic ions and drugs to impart specific biological functions. The incorporation of these carriers in a thermosensitive hydrogel, acting as vehicle phase, represents a strategy to release these therapeutic species in the pathological sites. The aim of this work is to design a hybrid platform based on MBGs containing strontium (inhibition of the osteoclast differentiation potential) and a Poloxamer 407-based poly(ether urethane) (PEU). In order to enhance the pro-osteogenic response, MBGs were also loaded with N-acetylcysteine (NAC).