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Bioactive glass-ceramic coated 3D scaffolds with proper mechanical properties were fabricated. The base material of the scaffold is bovine bone, which appears mainly as a waste of the meat processing industry. After pre-treatment, different glass-ceramic mixtures were deposited onto the surface of these bones by infiltration in a vacuum chamber to form a smooth layer having a thickness of about 20 ?m. This coating has a beneficial effect both on the hardness and bending strength, and has bioactive properties to promote the colonization of bone-forming cells. Therefore, a scaffold that provides mechanical support and is biodegradable, was achieved with the bovine bone - glass-ceramics composites. Structure and properties of the composite scaffolds were tested by imaging methods (SEM, LM, CT), chemical and phase composition (EDS, XRD), strength, hardness and specific surface area measurements. In vitro cytotoxicity and cell adsorption were tested using colon adenocarcinoma tumour cells.

Nanostructured composites containing iron oxide and hydroxyapatite (m-HA) were prepared by two wet chemical methods (single-step and double-step process) having different order of magnetite and HA precipitations. The phase composition, crystal size and lattice constants of the prepared composites were determined by XRD, the functional groups by FTIR and the structure, morphology and elemental composition by TEM. The magnetic susceptibility values and the colour indexes of each composite were also determined. Biocompatibility testing was performed in simulated body fluid. The results show that the composites produced by different (single-step and double-step) co-precipitating methods show different chemical and phase composition, average particle size, and therefore different superparamagnetic properties and bioactivities, with possibilities for different applications.