Abstract
Malignant bone tumor defects are difficult to treat because of the simultaneous need for tumor treatment and bone-repair promotion. This study presents a bioactive composite scaffold (T-rGO@Au) for personalized bone defect repair and bone tumor treatment. The T-rGO@Au scaffold has a porous structure, and its mechanical properties are close to those of human cancellous bone. The T-rGO@Au scaffold can induce upregulation of osteopontin (OPN), RUNX-2, and osteocalcin (OCN) gene expression. In vivo experiments showed that the bone volume/total volume (BV/TV) ratio with the T-rGO@Au scaffold was the highest. The new bone was tightly integrated with the implant, demonstrating effective osseointegration. The T-rGO@Au scaffold locally generated high temperatures and reactive oxygen species under near-infrared excitation, and AuNPs enhanced the photothermal performance of rGO through the "antenna effect." Furthermore, in vitro experiments showed that the tumor cell nuclei were destroyed, late-stage apoptotic cells increased, and cell morphology was severely damaged. Additionally, RNA-seq revealed that tumor cell destruction was mediated through signaling pathways, such as the MAPK pathway. In vivo antitumor experiments also demonstrated that the T-rGO@Au scaffold significantly inhibited the growth of tumor cells within 2 weeks. Thus, the T-rGO@Au scaffold provides a new treatment strategy for the development of implantable scaffolds for bone tumor defects.