Zinc and gallium doped borate bioactive glasses influence in-vitro angiogenesis: New evidence in cell co-culture studies

• Incorporating Zn and Ga into borate bioactive glass altered ionic release profiles. • Investigated glasses showed no adverse effect on cell viability at lower dilutions. • Innovative indirect co-culture of human fibroblast and endothelial cells employed. • Extracts from undoped and Zn doped glasses facilitate tubular formation. Borate bioactive glasses doped with 1 mol% ZnO or Ga 2 O 3 were produced by melt-quenching. The cytocompatibility of fibroblast and endothelial cells in response to glass extracts was assessed. The angiogenic potential was examined through fibroblast-derived vascular endothelial growth factor secretion and tubular formation analysis in an indirect co-culture of fibroblast and endothelial cells. The results confirm that Zn and Ga ion-releasing bioactive glasses are attractive biomaterials with angiogenic properties.