Review
Natural and Synthetic Coral Biomineralization for Human Bone Revitalization

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Trends

Coral organisms secrete a range of zoological-wide bioactive proteins and molecules that permeate the skeleton. Some of these are potentially useful in biomedicine, including limited applications in reconstructive skeletal surgery.

Coral polyp organisms can be nurtured within bioreactors on small microchips. These chips can promote the excretion of various human-active proteins and other biomolecules.

Certain coralline structures have shown effectiveness as safe and effective drug carriers that deliver their payload on site with graduated dosages; others can be used as bioreactor environments for stem cell expansion and rapid specialization into bone tissues in laboratory cultivation and in patients.

Techniques in biomimetic self-organization chemistry are providing the opportunity to grow synthetic coral-like structures and morphologies bearing component structures on many scales.

Coral skeletons can regenerate replacement human bone in nonload-bearing excavated skeletal locations. A combination of multiscale, interconnected pores and channels and highly bioactive surface chemistry has established corals as an important alternative to using healthy host bone replacements. Here, we highlight how coral skeletal systems are being remolded into new calcified structures or synthetic corals by biomimetic processes, as places for the organized permeation of bone tissue cells and blood vessels. Progressive technologies in coral aquaculture and self-organization inorganic chemistry are helping to modify natural corals and create synthetic coral architectures able to accelerate bone regeneration with proper host integration at more skeletal locations, adapted to recent surgical techniques and used to treat intrinsic skeletal deformities and metabolic conditions.

Section snippets

Applying Coral to Bone Replacement

Bone tissue is relatively resilient and has a high regenerative capacity compared with many other tissues. In normal settings, bone is able to regenerate and recover small losses to its structure. However, the destructive effects on bone resulting from disease, tumor resections, infections, skeletal abnormalities, and trauma require surgical intervention with clinically viable bone replacements, which can be human, natural, or synthetic in derivation [1]. The most significant and successful

Coral Aquaculture: The Most Effective Method of Growing Medical Corals in the Laboratory

The biomedical use of coral skeletons is hindered by the lack of specifications for ideal coral species in successful bone regeneration and by the lack of coral supplies, or suboptimal cultivation methods, in captivity. Future exploitation of coral organisms will spread damage further among habitats that are already contracting in size as a result of small increases in sea-water temperatures, toxic pollutants, dredging, and reef mining, which have already destroyed 19% of the reefs worldwide

Harnessing Biomineralization Chemistry in the Laboratory to Grow Artificial Coral Skeletons

Human bone biology, including its disease and repair, can inform artificial coral skeletal biology, biomineralization, and skeletogenesis, and provide information needed to manufacture useful biomimetic corals for bone replacement. Conversely, the functions of the different types of organic component present in biomineralization and skeletogenesis can be translated into correcting and augmenting human bone regeneration and healing. Understanding biomineralization can guide strategies for

Concluding Remarks: The Future for Revitalized Medical Coral Skeletons in Orthopedics

Novel applications of coral for promoting availability, bioactivity, strength, and specificity have been highlighted in this article. The topics described and highlighted in Figure 1 broaden the possibilities of coral skeletons in clinical orthopedics. A coral future in medicine can be assured by proper advances in: (i) coral farming; (ii) coral cultivation in captivity; and (iii) biomimetic generation of coral skeletons. The clinical use of coral skeletons will be positively transformed

Acknowledgments

This work was supported by the National Research Foundation of Korea (NRF) grant funded by the Korea government (MSIP; No. 2014R1A2A1A11050764). Further support was provided by the Bio & Medical Technology Development Program of the National Research Foundation (NRF) funded by the Korean government (MSIP; No. 2012M3A9B4028738).

Glossary

3D printing
an automated process to self-generate complex physical objects.
Allograft
tissue of one individual used in a donor tissue of another.
Anthozoa
a group of marine invertebrates with polyps as bodies.
Bioactivity
the specific interactions and effects of an object or material on cells, enzymes, proteins, genes, and tissues.
Bioceramic
inorganic minerals of biological origin that are structured under biological control.
Bioinspired
something developed, built, or manufactured in which nature,

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