Protein adsorption on titanium surfaces and their effect on osteoblast attachment.

The objective of this study was to investigate the adsorption of albumin and fibronectin on titanium (Ti) surfaces and the effect of preadsorbed albumin and fibronectin on osteoblast attachment in vitro. Bovine serum albumin and bovine fibronectin were used in this study. Maximum adsorption of bovine serum albumin and fibronectin on Ti surfaces was observed to occur after 180-min incubation. In the presence of preadsorbed proteins, osteoblast attachment on Ti surfaces was observed to be enhanced compared to control Ti surfaces. However, cell attachment was affected by the types of protein adsorbed. Preadsorbed albumin was observed to have no significant effect on the amount of osteoblast cells attached. In comparison to control Ti surface and Ti surfaces preadsorbed with albumin, Ti surfaces preadsorbed with fibronectin for 15 min was observed to significantly increase osteoblast cell attachment, whereas Ti surfaces preadsorbed with fibronectin for 180 min did not affect cell attachment. In addition, cell morphology of the attached cells on protein preadsorbed Ti surfaces was not affected by the type of protein used in this study. It was concluded from this study that the concentration of fibronectin adsorbed on Ti surfaces was higher compared to albumin. In addition, it was also concluded that the concentration of fibronectin on Ti surfaces plays a role in governing cell attachment. Copyright 2003 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Biomed Mater Res 67A: 344-349, 2003