title: Improving bone cement toughness and contrast agent confinement by using acrylic branched polymers.
abstract: A new biomedical material to be used as part of acrylic bone cement formulations is described. This new material is tough, its Young's Modulus is similar to the one of poly (methylmethacrylate) and the contrast agent, usually employed in acrylic bone cements, is homogeneously distributed among the polymeric matrix. Additionally, its wear coefficient is 66% lower than the one measured in poly(methyl methacrylate). The developed material is a branched polymer with polyisoprene backbone and poly(methyl methacrylate) side chains, which are capable of retaining barium sulphate nanoparticles thus avoiding their aggregation. The grafting reaction was carried out in presence of the nanoparticles, using methyl methacrylate as solvent. From the (1)H-NMR spectra it was possible to determine the average number of MMA units per unit of isoprene (3.75:1). The ability to retain nanoparticles (about 8wt.%), attributed to their interaction with the polymer branches, was determined by thermogravimetric analysis and confirmed by FTIR and microscopy techniques. By SEM microscopy it was also possible to determine the homogeneous spatial distribution of the barium sulphate nanoparticles along the polymer matrix.
authors.affiliation: CIHIDECAR-CONICET; Departamento de Química Orgánica, FCEyN - UBA, Ciudad Universitaria 1428, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires, Argentina; IFIBA - CONICET; LP&MC, Departamento de Física, FCEyN - UBA, Ciudad Universitaria 1428, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires, Argentina.
authors.forename: Maria H
authors.initials: MH
authors.lastname: Lissarrague
authors.affiliation: CIHIDECAR-CONICET; Departamento de Química Orgánica, FCEyN - UBA, Ciudad Universitaria 1428, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires, Argentina.
authors.forename: Mirta L
authors.initials: ML
authors.lastname: Fascio
authors.affiliation: IFIBA - CONICET; LP&MC, Departamento de Física, FCEyN - UBA, Ciudad Universitaria 1428, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires, Argentina. Electronic address: goyanes@df.uba.ar.
authors.forename: Silvia
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Goyanes
authors.affiliation: CIHIDECAR-CONICET; Departamento de Química Orgánica, FCEyN - UBA, Ciudad Universitaria 1428, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires, Argentina. Electronic address: norma@qo.fcen.uba.ar.
authors.forename: Norma B
authors.initials: NB
authors.lastname: D'Accorso
mesh_terms: D001672:Biocompatible Materials / Q000737:chemistry*; D001843:Bone Cements / Q000737:chemistry*; D003287:Contrast Media / Q000737:chemistry*; D055119:Elastic Modulus; D008422:Materials Testing; D019904:Polymethyl Methacrylate / Q000737:chemistry*; D012408:Rubber / Q000737:chemistry
chemical_list: D001672:Biocompatible Materials; D001843:Bone Cements; D003287:Contrast Media; D012408:Rubber; D019904:Polymethyl Methacrylate
keywords: Barium sulphate nanoparticles; Branched polymer; Natural rubber; Poly(methyl methacrylate); Polyisoprene