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To investigate how a thermal treatment to increase titanium wettability influences proteins adsorption from blood serum and osteoblasts responses. Titanium discs with machined or micro-rough profiles were thermally treated to obtain hydrophilic surfaces. The adsorption kinetics of two representative serum proteins were determined by Bradford assay, while the stable protein adsorption pattern from blood serum was investigated by SDS-PAGE and Western Blot analysis. Subsequently, MC3T3-E1 cells were cultured on titanium for 24h and assayed for adhesion and morphology. Thermally-induced hydrophilicity dramatically improved the capacity of titanium to selectively adsorb fibronectin and fibrinogen from blood serum, without evident influence on other representative serum proteins. The selective adsorption of fibronectin was linked to the improved capacity of MC3T3-E1 cells to adhere and spread on hydrophilic surfaces. We identified a potential method to improve selective protein adsorption on titanium by enhancing implant surface wettability through a thermal treatment. Selective fibronectin adsorption was further indicated as the responsible for improved osteoblasts adhesion. Targeting specific cell response by selective protein adsorption appears to be crucial to conceive even more performant therapies. • Titanium surface wettability affect blood plasma protein adsorption. • Fibronectin adsorption is promoted by thermally-induced hydrophilicity. • Selective fibronectin adsorption promotes cytoskeleton organization. • Selective fibronectin adsorption promotes focal adhesion expression in osteoblasts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Periodontitis is an inflammatory condition that can induce significant destruction of the periodontium, the set of specialized tissues that provide nourishment and support to the teeth. According to the guided tissue regeneration principles, the periodontium can be regenerated if the spatiotemporal control of wound healing is obtained, namely the tune control of cell response. After material implantation, protein adsorption at the interface is the first occurring biological event, which influences subsequent cell response. With the regard of this, we hypothesize that the control of selective adsorption of biological cues from the surrounding milieu may be a key-point to control selective cell colonization of scaffolds for periodontal tissue regeneration. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The host-material interface is a crucial relationship dictating the possibility of successful osseointegration in implant dentistry. The aim of the present study was to characterize the effects of plasma proteins pre-adsorption on the adhesion capacity of osteoblasts, which occurs immediately after implant insertion in vivo. After having pre-adsorbed human plasma proteins on a machined and microrough titanium surface, MC3T3-E1 osteoblasts adhesion was evaluated through crystal violet cell adhesion assay, immunofluorescence staining for cytoskeleton, focal adhesions and cell nuclei, and scanning electron microscopy. The pre-adsorbed protein layer markedly affected the adhesion rate of cells, as well as their morphology and the expression of focal contacts. Moreover, protein adsorption to the underlying titanium surface was found to be correlated to surface pre-wetting. Thus, the early adsorption of serum proteins to the interface of dental implants impacts cell adhesion in terms of strength and of focal adhesions expression. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In vitro studies have consistently shown that titanium surface wettability affects the response of osteoprogenitors, leading to important advances in the clinical osseointegration of dental implants. However, the underlying molecular mechanisms remain unknown. Since surface conditioning by blood components initiates within milliseconds after insertion, it is reasonable to hypothesize that the amount and the type of blood proteins adsorbed influences the interaction between the implant surface and osteoprogenitors. To test this hypothesis, titanium implant surfaces with different characteristics, in terms of topography and wettability, have been conditioned with selected plasma proteins. Pure fibronectin (HFN) and albumin (HSA) solutions, or their mixture at the relative plasma concentrations were allowed to adsorb on titanium surfaces for 60 min. Protein adsorption was monitored by Bradford assay, while the contribution of HSA and HFN in forming the microfilm layer at the interface was studied by Western Blot. Subsequently, the same protein-conditioned surfaces were used to culture C2C12 cells, thus studying their capacity to adhere and to spread after 3 h. Cell viability was evaluated up to 7 days, while the expression of osteogenic genes was assessed after 3 days. Under competitive adsorption conditions, hydrophilicity promotes the selectivity of titanium for HFN regardless of the surface microtopography. As a consequence of selective HFN adsorption, cells on hydrophilic surfaces displayed enhanced adhesion and spreading, as well as increased proliferation. On the other hand, selective HFN adsorption did not appreciably affect cell differentiation. These data suggest that implant surface hydrophilicity plays a key role in guiding the selective adsorption of specific proteins from blood plasma. Moreover, the selective adsorption of HFN, as a consequence of surface hydrophilicity, was found to account for early cell responses amelioration. Thus, titanium surface hydrophilicity contributes to the clinical success of dental implant by selectively controlling protein adsorption at the interface. • Titanium surface characteristics affect proteins adsorption. • Hydrophilicity confers to titanium a remarkably affinity for HFN adsorption. • Hydrophilicity promotes HFN over HSA adsorption at physiological concentrations. • Selective HFN adsorption affects early cell adhesion, spreading and proliferation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]