Matrix for a bone made of beer cake

The waste of brewing production will become bones

ChemPort.Ru

Researchers from Spain have found that the waste from brewing production can be recycled and used for the manufacture of artificial bones, implants and coatings for prostheses.

In 2010, 50 million patients suffering from osteoporosis were registered in the world, according to experts, by 2020 the number of people for whom this disease will be diagnosed will reach 60 million. The creation of artificial bone tissue is considered as a promising approach to traditional surgical procedures for the replacement of damaged bone tissue. Due to these circumstances, there has recently been an interest in the development of new biologically compatible and biodegradable materials that could act to create matrices that ensure the correct growth of new bone tissue, supporting the interaction of cells with each other, as well as the formation of extracellular matrix.

Currently, recycled sheep bones or expensive synthetic materials are used to replace bones and joints. The results of the new work show that for the manufacture of matrices that promote bone growth, as well as prosthetic coatings, it is possible to successfully use brewing waste. The fact is that these wastes, which were recently sent to landfills or used for feeding livestock, contain phosphorus, calcium and magnesium – the main components that are also found in the composition of bone tissue cells – osteoblasts. Processing of the cake left after brewing makes it possible to obtain a highly porous, flexible and durable material that can be used as scaffolding to accommodate bone stem cells.

Figure from the article by Rojo et al. Preparation, characterization and in vitro osteoblast growth of waste-derived biomaterials
(RSC Advances, 2014)

The porous structure of the new material, almost similar to the porous structure of human spongy bones, as well as the fact that such scaffolding consists only of components of organic origin, and toxic chemicals are not used in their manufacture, ensure the biological compatibility of templates with cells, as well as the fact that after bone restoration, these scaffolds dissolve without a trace for the body. The researchers explain that the characteristics of the new material obtained from the waste of brewing production can be optimized to solve any specific tasks - by changing the processing conditions and not using additional non–renewable materials, it is possible to obtain either coatings for artificial joints or matrices for growing dental implants.

The press release of Beer brewing waste could help bone regeneration is published on the website of Universidad Politecnica de Madrid – VM.

Portal "Eternal youth" http://vechnayamolodost.ru20.06.2014