Morphological evaluation of bone defect regeneration after treatment with two different forms of bone substitution materials on the basis of BONITmatrix.

In the design of biomaterials for therapeutic application the evaluation of cellular/tissue responses play a key role. In this study, the in vivo bone-regenerative capacity and resorption of granular BONITmatrix and a paste-like bone substitution material on the basis of BONITmatrix were investigated in a rat cranial defect model. The results obtained with both biomaterials were compared to each other. For these, the paste-like composite and the granular BONITmatrix were implanted in adult male WOK-W rats, the skulls were harvested after eight weeks, and histopathological examinated. The comparison of the both tested biomaterials showed that the paste-like composite is much better to handle, the resorption of the material and the ossification process is much faster than those of granular BONITmatrix. The amount of newly formed bone was also measured and more bone formation was found in bone defects filled with the paste-like composite compared to those with granular BONITmatrix. The present study showed that both biomaterials could stimulate bone regeneration, but the paste-like composite leads in comparison to granular BONITmatrix to an accelerated more comprehensive bone regeneration.