Plant Extract as the Booster of the Bioactive Properties of Manganese Doped Ceramics

The series of ceramics with a host composition corresponding to popular 45S5 bioglass doped with manganese ions was prepared using the modified sol-gel technique with a citric acid as a catalyst. The same line of ceramics, for the first time in the case of bioactive glasses or ceramics, was obtained in the procedure applying an addition of a plant extract – aloe vera one -as a surfactant to get more porous material. The structure and properties of the glasses were characterized with SEM, XRD, DSC, Raman and IR spectroscopy. All samples, regardless the Mn ions concentration, are bioactive as it was shown by in vitro immersion in artificial plasma – increase of manganese content improves the bioactivity of the material. The addition of aloe vera gel leads to a significant increase in the surface porosity of the samples; its scale is correlated with content of the aloe vera. Studies reveal that Mn exists in tetrahedral positions coordinating oxygen and reducing concentration of NBO. An addition of aloe vera change this situation lowering cross-linking of the ceramic glassy host. Amount of aloe vera in the presence of Mn dopant plays an important role in speeding the growth of phosphate compounds layers. The phosphorous layer growth during immersion in SBF is both quicker and more intense in the case of material prepared with the plant extract. This study reveal, using Raman 3D mapping, that the HpA is not located only at the surface of the samples but also in the volume and that its volume concentration is bigger than the surface one.