In this University-Industry Partnership, we are focused on development and testing of diamond-on-diamond and diamond-on-polyethylene surfaces for minimizing wear between articulation components in orthopaedic devices. Complications arising from wear include component loosening, deleterious biological responses, osteolysis, mechanical instability, decreased joint mobility, increased pain, and ultimately implant failure. In this project, UAB and Smith &Nephew, Inc. team up to develop and test unique nanostructured multilayer diamond coatings on metal (CoCrMo or Ti-6Al-4V) orthopaedic devices with the goal of reducing friction and wear in articulation components. We propose a five-year study to focus on the following specific aims:
Specific Aim 1 : Develop nanotechnology for reducing friction and wear on the articulating, load-bearing components of hip and knee metallic implants by chemical vapor deposition (CVD) of a diamond coating having a multilayer structure with alternating nano- and micro-structural layered components.
Specific Aim 2 : Demonstrate that the multilayer diamond coatings (intended for diamond-on- diamond or diamond-on-polyethylene articulation) exhibit improved wear resistance when compared to single- layer diamond-on-diamond articulation or to the metal-on-polyethylene or metal-on-metal couples currently used in commercial orthopaedic devices.
Specific Aim 3 : Perform wear simulator studies involving diamond coated hip and knee articulation components using the industry-standard multi-axis hip and knee simulators located at Smith &Nephew, Inc.
Specific Aim 4 : Evaluate cellular response to diamond wear debris particles, as compared to polyethylene and cobalt chrome debris particles.
Specific Aim 5 : Perform in vivo investigations to characterize the initial short term organic and cellular responses of control and diamond biomaterials to overall biocompatibility profiles. Wear debris collected from the tribological studies will be implanted (injected) into the synovial-like air pouch model in the adult rat for short term (hours to days) in order to assess clinical, cellular, histological and cytokine biocompatibility profiles. Implants of discs into trabecular bone regions of rabbits will assess initial tissue fluid and blood interactions with control and coated implant surfaces for time points ranging from hours to months. The overall clinical impact of this proposed BRP would be in improving the service life time of total joint replacements to more than thirty years and hence dramatically reducing the need for recurrent multiple surgical procedures.

Public Health Relevance

We propose the use of nanotechnology approaches for controlling interfaces between the hip and knee implants and the surrounding tissues. The primary focus of this grant application is to improve the fixation, durability and osseointegration for long-term success of Total Joint Replacements and lower the need for recurrent multiple surgical procedures. Also, development of new nanotechnology tools and methods will lead to a new class of functionalized nanostructured surfaces for titanium and cobalt chrome alloys for use in biomedical implant industry. One benefit of the diamond-diamond components will be reductions in overall device size that will ultimately allow for a clinically less-invasive route to joint restoration and longer implant lifetime in vivo.

Agency
National Institute of Health (NIH)
Institute
National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases (NIAMS)
Type
Research Project (R01)
Project #
1R01AR056665-01A1
Application #
7726334
Study Section
Special Emphasis Panel (ZRG1-MOSS-B (03))
Program Officer
Panagis, James S
Project Start
2009-07-01
Project End
2013-06-30
Budget Start
2009-07-01
Budget End
2010-06-30
Support Year
1
Fiscal Year
2009
Total Cost
$197,606
Indirect Cost
Name
University of Alabama Birmingham
Department
Physics
Type
Schools of Arts and Sciences
DUNS #
063690705
City
Birmingham
State
AL
Country
United States
Zip Code
35294
Baker, Paul A; Thompson, Raymond G; Catledge, Shane A (2016) A wear simulation study of nanostructured CVD diamond-on-diamond articulation involving concave/convex mating surfaces. J Coat Technol Res 13:385-393
Singh, Sonal; Thomas, Vinoy; Martyshkin, Dmitry et al. (2014) Spatially controlled fabrication of a bright fluorescent nanodiamond-array with enhanced far-red Si-V luminescence. Nanotechnology 25:045302
Catledge, S A; Thomas, V; Vohra, Y K (2013) Nanostructured diamond coatings for orthopaedic applications. Woodhead Publ Ser Biomater 2013:105-150
Thomas, Vinoy; Halloran, Brian A; Ambalavanan, Namasivayam et al. (2012) In vitro studies on the effect of particle size on macrophage responses to nanodiamond wear debris. Acta Biomater 8:1939-47
Catledge, Shane A; Vaid, Rishi; Diggins 4th, Patrick et al. (2011) Improved adhesion of ultra-hard carbon films on cobalt-chromium orthopaedic implant alloy. J Mater Sci Mater Med 22:307-16
Booth, Leigh; Catledge, Shane A; Nolen, Dustin et al. (2011) Synthesis and Characterization of Multilayered Diamond Coatings for Biomedical Implants. Materials (Basel) 4:857-867