Human osteoblast-like MG 63 cells in cultures on carbon fibre-reinforced carbon composites coated with zirconium nitride

Zirconium nitride is considered as a promising material for strengthening for surface of various materials, especially those designed for hard tissue surgery. In this study, five groups of materials were prepared: non-modified carbon fibre-reinforced carbon composites (CFRC), CFRC ground with metallographic paper, non-ground CFRC with a layer of ZrN deposited by magnetron sputtering, ground CFRC with a ZrN layer deposited by the arc technique, and ground CFRC with a ZrN layer deposited by a magnetron. We found that all samples gave good support for the adhesion and growth of human-osteoblast-like MG 63 cells, though the cell numbers on these materials were often lower than on standard cell culture polystyrene dishes and microscopic glass coverslips. Nevertheless, ZrN films can be considered as suitable materials for surface modification of bone implants in order to improve their mechanical properties and their integration with the surrounding tissue.