Both Phosphonic Acid- and Fluorine-Containing Poly(aryl ether)–hydroxyapatite Biocomposites: Toward Enhanced Biocompatibility and Bonelike Elastic Modulus

Metal-based implants possess excellent mechanical strength, corrosion resistance, and biocompatibility and can deliver favorable performances in clinic treatments. However, modulus mismatching is considered a common defect for metal-based materials, while polymer-based materials with a bonelike elastic modulus have been regarded as one of the most promising candidates for bone replacement implants. In this work, a phosphonic acid- and fluorine-containing poly(aryl ether) (PAE) resin is designed and synthesized, which is determined to be an amorphous polymer with excellent thermostability. The elastic modulus of composites is improved to 15.7 GPa by reinforcing with 60 wt % hydroxyapatite (HA), which demonstrates admirable protein adsorption and hydrophilicity. After 14 days of immersion in simulated body fluid, a layer of HA deposition can be observed, indicating favorable bioactivity in advance, and the preliminary in vitro cell experiments also suggest that PAE-HA composites possess favorable cell responses on adhesion, proliferation, and differentiation, which reveal the feasibility of synthesized polymers to be employed as bone replacement materials, while the adjustability in molecular chains also leaves room for further investigations.