Bisphenol A glycidylmethacrylate (BisGMA)/triethyleneglycol dimethacrylate (TEGDMA) thermosets and composites are well-known examples of biomaterials for dental applications that are receiving growing interest for orthopedic applications. While mechanical bulk properties are guaranteed by the presence of reinforcing fibers, in vitro and in vivo performances of these materials are ultimately driven by their ability to establish proper interactions between their surface and the surrounding tissues. Hence, the development of novel chemical processes enabling the introduction of bioactive molecules on the surface of these methacrylate-based thermosets is of particular interest. In the present work, we have devised a chemical strategy to expose carboxylic groups on the surface of the BisGMA/TEGDMA thermoset. The presence of negative charges was confirmed by Fourier transform infrared-attenuated total reflectance and by UV-vis spectrophotometry. Bulk mechanical properties and surface morphology of the thermoset were only slightly affected upon chemical functionalization. The activated material was further refined by the deposition of a lactose-modified chitosan (chitlac) driven by strong electrostatic interactions. The presence of the bioactive polysaccharide was confirmed by fluorescence spectroscopy and by confocal laser scanning microscopy measurements. Scratch tests were performed to evaluate the mechanical behavior of the coating. Finally, in vitro tests revealed that the presence of chitlac led to a slight enhancement of cell proliferation with respect to the unmodified BisGMA/TEGDMA thermoset. This effect was more pronounced when chitlac decorated with an arginine-glycine-aspartic acid (RGD) peptide was used in the preparation of the coating. In the latter case, the in vitro performance of the coated BisGMA/TEGDMA thermoset became comparable with that of clinically used roughened titanium.
