# Manganese dioxide- and cobalt oxide-doped hydroxyapatite with curcumin for orthopedic and dental applications

## TL;DR

This study creates antibacterial bone scaffolds using doped hydroxyapatite and curcumin, offering a safer option for orthopedic and dental applications.

## Contribution

The novel approach combines CoO–MnO2-doped HA with curcumin to enhance antibacterial properties without cytotoxicity.

## Key findings

- Doping HA with CoO and MnO2 does not affect its phase or microstructure.
- Combining dopants with curcumin achieves ~95% antibacterial efficacy against S. aureus.
- The material shows no cytotoxicity with NIH3T3 cells and maintains bioactivity at physiological pH.

## Abstract

Due to their compositional similarities to bone, hydroxyapatite (HA)-based materials are used as bioactive ceramics for musculoskeletal repair. However, because of the lack of any inherent antibacterial properties, HA scaffolds have higher possibilities of post-surgical bacterial infections. The goal of this research is to fabricate alternate antibacterial and cytocompatible bone tissue engineering scaffolds using cobalt oxide (CoO)- and manganese dioxide (MnO2)-doped HA and plant-sourced curcumin from turmeric. Characterization results show no negative effects in phase and microstructure because of doping. When dopants and curcumin are combined, the antibacterial efficacy against S. aureus is ~ 95% after 24 h. The addition of dopants does not result in any cytotoxicity with the NIH3T3 cell line, and the bioactivity of this delivery system is confirmed in a physiological pH of 7.4. In summary, our findings provide an alternate method for manufacturing antibacterial scaffolds for orthopedic and dental applications employing curcumin-loaded CoO–MnO2-doped HA.