Bioactive glasses are widely studied in the biomaterial field because of their
ability to chemically bind to living tissues and to positively stimulate cells through the
release of specific ions. They are extremely versatile materials, in fact their composition
can be tailored in order to improve particular properties (e.g. bioactivity, resorbability,
mechanical resistance …). In this research work, different strategies aimed to modify the
surface of bioactive glasses have been reviewed. The main idea of these treatments is to
combine the conventional properties of bioactive glasses (bioactivity, ion release …) with
more specific ones, by the addition of particular ions or the grafting of biologically active
molecules (e.g. proteins or drugs). At first a brief introduction on bioactive glasses is
reported, then surface modification by the introduction of active ions is described and
finally the surface functionalization with biomolecules (proteins or drugs) is discussed.
Keywords: Bioactive glass, osteoinductive, osteoconductive, surface functionalizetion,
antimicrobial.
