Sponge-derived natural bioactive glass microspheres with self-assembled surface channel arrays opening into a hollow core for bone tissue and controlled drug release applications

Porous, bioactive microspheres have always been a dream material to biomedical scientists for bone regeneration and drug delivery applications due their interconnectivity, unique pore geometry, encapsulation ability porosity spanning macroscopic, microscopic nanoscopic length scales. Extensive efforts made produce such materials synthetically at great cost of money, time labor. Herein, naturally-assembled multifunctional, open-channeled hollow micro silica spheres (diameter 209.4 ± 38.5 µm) were discovered in marine sponge (Geodia macandrewii), by peeling the outer surface sterrasters using hydrogen fluoride. The obtained exhibited valuable characteristics as homogeneously distributed pores, cavity center sphere, channels (approx. 3000) opening from each into central cavity. Simulated body fluid analysis demonstrated bioactivity spheres; whereas, no was recorded original untreated sterrasters. non-cytotoxicity osteogenic isolated confirmed through osteoblast cell culture. Finally, these based porous tested controlled release capacity. showed excellent loading abilities an anti-cancer drug, carboplatin, simulated solutions human cancer culture, HeLa, real analyzer system. capacity beads determined 10.59%. Considering biological physicochemical properties, novel spheres, which we name giant macroporous (GMS), are promising range including tissue engineering delivery.