# Erythromycin-doped nanofiber coating to increase implant longevity

> **NIH VA I01** · JOHN D DINGELL VA MEDICAL CENTER · 2020 · —

## Abstract

Failure of osseointegration (direct anchorage of an implant by bone formation at the bone-implant surface)
and implant infection are the two main causes of implant failure and loosening. There is an urgent need for
orthopedic implants that both promote rapid osseointegration and prevent bacterial colonization, particularly
when placed in bone compromised by disease or the physiology of the patients. The goal of this study is to
develop a bactericidal “bone-like” nanofiber (NF) coating to enhance osseointegration while preventing
implant infection. To imitate the architecture of the natural bone matrix, we developed coaxial electrospun NFs
composed of poly (lactide-co-glycolide) (PLGA) and polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) polymers arranged in a core-
sheath configuration. PLGA is a FDA-approved co-polymer with long clinical experience as a carrier for
sustained drug release. Type I collagen (Col) was embedded in the PLGA to form a bioactive PLGACol sheath
fiber. PVA has a good fiber-forming capability and will be used to encapsulate nanoscale hydroxyapatite (HA)
to form a hydrophilic PVAHA core fiber. The PLGACol/PVAHA NFs are biocompatible and biodegradable with
appropriate fiber diameter, pore size and mechanical strength, leading to enhanced cell adhesion, proliferation
and differentiation of bone marrow stromal cells (BMSCs). In the proposed study, we will embed erythromycin
(EM, bactericidal and anti-osteoclastic) into PLGACol/PVAHA NFs. We hypothesize that NFs will mimic the
biological, structural and mechanical behaviors of natural bone, and enhance the adhesion, growth and
differentiation of BMSCs. We propose that the embedding of EM in the PLGACol/PVAHA NFs will inhibit
bacterial colonization and promote implant osseointegration because of its stimulatory activity of bone healing.
We will test our hypothesis by pursuing three Aims: Aim 1: Develop an optimal PLGACol/PVAHA NF
formulation for titanium (Ti) implant coating: (a) Define an optimal NF formulation based on the cellular
response (viability, proliferation and osteogenic differentiation of rat BMSCs, and (b) Further optimize the
bonding strength of NF coating to the Ti implant in an ex vivo porcine bone implantation model; Aim 2:
Characterize the effects of EM doping of PLGACol/PVAHA NFs on the cellular response, bacterial growth
and biofilm formation in vitro. We propose that EM doping will change the physiochemical nature of NFs
(morphology, surface topology, degradation, mechanical strength and EM release dynamics, Aim 2a), which
will impact on the cellular response (viability, proliferation and osteogenic differentiation of rat BMSCs, Aim 2b),
and bacterial growth and biofilm formation (adhesion, viability and biofilm formation of Staphylococcus aureus,
S. aureus, Aim 2c), and Aim 3: Determine the effects of EM doping of PLGACol/PVAHANFs on infection
inhibition and osseointegration in a rat S. aureus- infected tibia implantation model. We will determine
whether the EM-NF coating is suffi...

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10062408
- **Project number:** 5I01RX001818-04
- **Recipient organization:** JOHN D DINGELL VA MEDICAL CENTER
- **Principal Investigator:** WEIPING REN
- **Activity code:** I01 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** VA
- **Fiscal year:** 2020
- **Award amount:** —
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2017-01-01 → 2020-12-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10062408

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10062408, Erythromycin-doped nanofiber coating to increase implant longevity (5I01RX001818-04). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-27 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10062408. Licensed CC0.

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