Dexamethasone-Loaded Bioactive Coatings on Medical Grade Stainless Steel Promote Osteointegration

In this study, a multilayer bioactive coating based on carboxymethyl cellulose (CMC) and dexamethasone (DEX) was prepared on medical-grade stainless steel (AISI 316LVM). Its aim was the controlled drug delivery of the incorporated anti‑inflammatory drug, which at the same time promotes osteogenic differentiation of mesenchymal stem cells. Due to DEX’s limited solubility in physiological fluids, which limits the loading capacity of coatings, it was further combined with β-cyclodextrin to increase its concentration in the bioactive coating. Controlled release of DEX from the multilayer coating was achieved in four steps: a “burst”, i.e., very fast, release step (in an immersion interval of 0–10 min), a fast release step (10–30 min), a slow-release step (60–360 min), and a plateau step (360–4320 min), following a zero-order release or Higuchi model release mechanism. Successful layer-by-layer coating formation was confirmed using attenuated total reflectance Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (ATR-FTIR). It was shown that the application of the coating significantly increases the hydrophilic character of AISI 316LVM, and also significantly increases the surface roughness, which is known to promote cell growth. In addition, electrochemical measurements demonstrated that the coating application does not increase the susceptibility of medical-grade stainless steel to corrosion. In vitro cell testing using all cell types with which such coatings come into contact in the body (osteoblasts, chondrocytes, and mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs)) showed very good biocompatibility towards all of the mentioned cells. It further confirmed that the coatings promoted MSCs osteogenic differentiation, which is the desired mode of action for orthopedic implants.