Dexamethasone delivery with coated calcium carbonate microcubes for sustained growth of osteoblasts

There is an exponential growing attention in developing new micro/nano-delivery systems for controlled delivery of bioactive agents, to control cellular functions modulation in a more effective manner. In this study, the effect of dexamethasone encapsulated in calcium carbonate microcubes on proliferation and osteogenic activity of human osteoblasts in vitro was investigated. Dexamethasone-loaded calcium carbonate microcubes are suggested for supportive controlled release and improving osteogenic activity of low dose of dexamethasone. The calcium carbonate microcubes have a cubic structure of about 2 µm and represent a good performance in molecular delivery systems for bone tissue engineering thanks to their potential to mimic the composition, structure, and properties of native bone. The presence of polyelectrolyte multilayers that covered the calcium carbonate microcubes allowed to modulate the release kinetics of active dexamethasone over time. Our dexamethasone-loaded calcium carbonate microcubes provide a simple and easy way to allow controlled release of dexamethasone or other active agents in scaffolds for bone tissue engineering applications.