Microstructure and In Vitro Evaluation of Extruded and Hot Drawn Alloy MgCa0.7 for Biodegradable Surgical Wires

The MgCa0.7 alloy may be a promising material for biodegradable surgical wires. In this paper, the technology for producing surgical wires from this alloy has been developed, based both on finite element modelling and experimental study. In particular, the extrusion and hot-drawing effects on the mechanical properties, microstructures, in-vitro rates of biocorrosion, and cytotoxicity to human cancer cells (SaOS-2) and healthy (hPDL) ones, have been determined. An approximately 30–40% increase in corrosion rate due to increasing hot-drawing temperature was observed. An effect of hot-drawing temperature on cytotoxicity was also found. Notably, at various stages of the final wires’ production, the MgCa0.7 alloy became toxic to cancer cells. This cytotoxicity depended on the alloys’ processing parameters and was maximal for the as-extruded rod and for the wires immediately after hot drawing at 440 °C. Thus, the careful selection of processing parameters makes it possible to obtain a product that is not only a promising candidate for biodegradable surgical wires, but one which also has intrinsic bioactive properties that produce antitumor activity.