2006 年 19 巻 3 号 p. 283-289
Pore size must be large enough to help cell ingrowth of bone marrow cells and new bone ingrowth. However, increasing the pore size results in a decrease of compressive strength of the porous structure. Therefore, the pore size should be controlled so as to obtain higher mechanical strength than that of cortical bone. Ti60-Zr40 porous blocks of pore size 95 ~172 μm had higher mechanical strengths than that of cortical bone. In this in vitro study, Ti60-Zr40 porous blocks with mean pore sizes of 95 μm, 120 μm, 149 μm and 172 μm were used to investigate cell ingrowth of bone formative group cells (BFGCs) derived from beagle's femur. Clear-cut evidence of pore size dependency on cell ingrowth was found. No cell ingrowth of BFGCs into the porous block was observed for pore sizes of less than 95 μm. For large pore sizes of more than 149 μm active cell ingrowth was demonstrated. This in vitro study clarified that Ti60-Zr40 porous implant with 149 μm pore size may be effective for early fixation of dental implant by tissue engiveering using host bone marrow cells.