RGDC Peptide-Induced Biomimetic Calcium Phosphate Coating Formed on AZ31 Magnesium Alloy

Magnesium alloys as biodegradable metal implants have received a lot of interest in biomedical applications. However, magnesium alloys have extremely high corrosion rates a in physiological environment, which have limited their application in the orthopedic field. In this study, calcium phosphate compounds (Ca–P) coating was prepared by arginine–glycine–aspartic acid–cysteine (RGDC) peptide-induced mineralization in 1.5 simulated body fluid (SBF) to improve the corrosion resistance and biocompatibility of the AZ31 magnesium alloys. The adhesion of Ca–P coating to the AZ31 substrates was evaluated by a scratch test. Corrosion resistance and cytocompatibility of the Ca–P coating were investigated. The results showed that the RGDC could effectively promote the nucleation and crystallization of the Ca–P coating and the Ca–P coating had poor adhesion to the AZ31 substrates. The corrosion resistance and biocompatibility of the biomimetic Ca–P coating Mg alloys were greatly improved compared with that of the uncoated sample.