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ORIGINAL RESEARCH

Bioactive glass/ciprofloxacin-loaded dual-layer coating on polyetheretherketone scaffolds for enhanced antibacterial and osteogenic properties

Jingjie Yu1,2 ,  Yuhan Zhang1 ,  Lehao Han3 ,  Jiale Yang1 ,  Qiang Chen1*
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1 State Key Laboratory of Solidification Processing, School of Materials Science and Engineering, Northwestern Polytechnical University, Xi’an, Shaanxi, China
2 Department of Chemistry “Giacomo Ciamician,” University of Bologna, Bologna, Emilia-Romagna, Italy
3 Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Queen Mary University of London Engineering School, Northwestern Polytechnical University, Xi’an, Shaanxi, China
BMT, 95 https://doi.org/10.12336/bmt.25.00095
Submitted: 11 July 2025 | Revised: 31 October 2025 | Accepted: 7 January 2026 | Published: 8 April 2026
© 2026 by the Author(s). Licensee Biomaterials Translational, USA. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 (CC BY-NC-SA 4.0) (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0/deed.en)
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Abstract

Despite its prominent biocompatibility and bone-like mechanical properties, polyetheretherketone (PEEK) has limited clinical application due to its inherent bioinertness and susceptibility to bacterial infection. The porous design of PEEK scaffolds enhances osseointegration via structural biomimicry, but their complex architectures hinder effective surface modification. In this study, 45S5 bioactive glass (BG) coatings were fabricated through a sand casting-inspired method on porous PEEK scaffolds, followed by polydopamine (PDA)-mediated adhesion of ciprofloxacin hydrochloride-loaded gelatin nanospheres (GNs). The incorporation of GNs improved drug-loading capacity compared to PDA-only coatings. The modified scaffolds rapidly induced hydroxyapatite formation and exhibited excellent antibacterial activity and osteogenic properties. Furthermore, the hydrolysis of acidic ciprofloxacin hydrochloride counterbalanced the hyperalkaline environment caused by BG degradation, establishing a mildly alkaline microenvironment. In conclusion, this study provides a promising solution for the surface modification of PEEK scaffolds and endows them with excellent antibacterial and osteogenic activities.

Keywords
Polyetheretherketone scaffolds
Surface modification
Osteogenesis
Antibacterial activity
Funding
The authors received support from the National Natural Science Foundation of China (31800802), the Science Foundation for Distinguished Young Scholars of Shaanxi Province (2023-JC-JQ-35), and the Northwestern Polytechnical University College Student Innovation and Entrepreneurship Training Program (202310699008).
Conflict of interest
The authors declare no conflict of interest.
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