Claims
- 1. A composite biocompatible hydrogel material, comprising:
a porous polymer matrix, said polymer matrix including a plurality of pores and providing a Young's modulus of at least 10 GPa, and a calcium comprising salt, said calcium salt disposed in at least some of said plurality of pores.
- 2. The composite material of claim 1, wherein said polymer comprises at least one selected from the group of cellulose or cellulose derivatives.
- 3. The composite material of claim 1, wherein said calcium salt comprises calcium phosphate.
- 4. The composite material of claim 3, wherein said calcium phosphate comprises hydroxyapatite.
- 5. The composite material of claim 4, wherein said hydroxyapatite includes carbonate or fluoride.
- 6. The composite material of claim 1, wherein said polymer comprises bacterial cellulose.
- 7. A composite biocompatible material, comprising:
a porous cellulose comprising material, said cellulose material including a plurality of pores, and a calcium comprising salt, said calcium salt disposed in at least some of said plurality of pores.
- 8. The composite material of claim 7, wherein said cellulose is bacterial cellulose.
- 9. The composite material of claim 7, wherein said calcium salt comprises calcium phosphate.
- 10. A synthetic bone graft material, comprising:
a porous polymer matrix, said polymer matrix including a plurality of pores and providing a Young's modulus of at least 10 GPa, and a calcium comprising salt, said calcium salt disposed in at least some of said pores.
- 11. The bone graft material of claim 10, wherein said polymer comprises cellulose or cellulose derivatives.
- 12. The bone graft material of claim 10, wherein said calcium salt comprises calcium phosphate.
- 13. The bone graft material of claim 12, wherein said calcium phosphate comprises hydroxyapatite.
- 14. The bone graft material of claim 13, wherein said hydroxyapatite includes carbonate or fluoride.
- 15. The bone graft material of claim 10, wherein said polymer comprises bacterial cellulose.
- 16. The bone graft material of claim 15, further comprising bone morphogenetic proteins (BMP's) or chondrocytes disposed in at least some of said plurality of pores.
- 17. A method of tissue repair within the body of animals, comprising the steps of:
providing a composite biocompatible hydrogel material including a porous polymer matrix, said polymer matrix including a plurality of pores and providing a Young's modulus of at least 10 GPa, and a calcium comprising salt, said calcium salt disposed in at least some of said pores, and inserting said hydrogel material into cartilage or bone tissue of an animal, wherein said hydrogel material supports cell colonization in vitro for autologous cell seeding.
- 18. The method of tissue repair of claim 17, wherein said calcium salt comprises hydroxyapatite.
- 19. The method of tissue repair of claim 17, wherein said polymer comprises bacterial cellulose.
- 20. A method of forming a biocompatible composite hydrogel material, comprising the steps of:
providing a porous polymer matrix, said polymer matrix including a plurality of pores and providing a Young's modulus of at least 10 GPa, and impregnating at least some of said plurality of pores with a calcium salt.
- 21. The method of claim 20, wherein said impregnating step comprises the steps of immersing said polymer matrix into a solution containing a calcium source and immersing said polymer matrix in a solution including a source of phosphate, wherein calcium phosphate is formed in said pores.
- 22. The method of claim 21, wherein said polymer matrix is generated by bacteria from the genus Gluconacetobacter, whereby said polymer comprises cellulose or cellulose derivatives.
- 23. The method of claim 21, wherein said bacteria is Gluconacetobacter hansenii.
- 24. The method of claim 20, wherein said calcium salt is at least one selected from the group consisting of calcium phosphate, calcium fluoride and calcium carbonate.
- 25. The method of claim 20, wherein said calcium phosphate comprises hydroxyapatite.
- 26. The method of claim 20, wherein said impregnating step comprises the steps of phosphorylating said polymer and immersing said phosphorylated polymer in a calcium comprising solution.
- 27. The method of claim 20, wherein said polymer comprises bacterial cellulose.
STATEMENT REGARDING FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH
[0001] The United States Government has rights in this invention pursuant to Contract No. DEAC05-000R22725 between the United States Department of Energy and UT-Battelle, LLC.