A biodegradable Fe–0.6Se alloy with superior strength and effective antibacterial and antitumor capabilities for orthopedic applications

Iron-selenium (Fe-Se) alloys have potential as attractive biodegradable bone-implant materials, given the antitumor properties of Se in cancer prevention and therapy. However, the fabrication of Fe-Se alloys is challenging due to the volatility of elemental Se and the significantly different melting points of Se and Fe. In this study, we successfully fabricated Fe-xSe (x = 0.2, 0.4, 0.6, 0.8, and 1 wt.%) alloys using suction casting, with FeSe compounds as the Se source. The microstructures, tensile properties, corrosion behavior, biocompatibility, antibacterial ability, and antitumor properties of the Fe-Se alloys were evaluated. The microstructures of the Fe-Se alloys were composed of α-Fe and FeSe phases. Among the Fe-Se alloys, Fe-0.6Se showed the best combination of tensile properties, with a yield strength of 1096.5 ± 7.2 MPa, an ultimate tensile strength of 1271.6 ± 6.3 MPa, and a fracture strain of 15.6 ± 3.3 %, and a degradation rate of 56.9 ± 0.4 μm/year. Moreover, the Fe-0.6Se alloy showed superb antibacterial ability against S. aureus, antitumor activity against 143B osteosarcoma cells, and osteogenicity and biocompatibility toward pre-osteoblast MC3T3-E1 cells. In summary, adding 0.2-1.0 wt.% Se to Fe does not affect the growth of healthy cells but effectively inhibits the growth and reproduction of tumor cells, and the Fe-0.6Se alloy is promising for orthopedic applications owing to its unique combination of mechanical and biofunctional properties. STATEMENT OF SIGNIFICANCE: This work reports on Fe-xSe (x = 0.2, 0.4, 0.6, 0.8, and 1 wt.%) alloys fabricated using suction casting. The microstructures of the Fe-Se alloys were composed of α-Fe and FeSe phases. Among the Fe-Se alloys, the Fe-0.6Se showed the best combination of tensile properties, with a yield strength of 1058.6 ± 3.9 MPa, an ultimate tensile strength of 1134.1 ± 2.9 MPa, and a fracture strain of 16.8 ± 1.5 %, and a degradation rate of 56.9 ± 0.4 μm/year. Moreover, the Fe-0.6Se alloy showed superb antibacterial ability against S. aureus, antitumor activity against 143B osteosarcoma cells, and significant osteogenic ability and biocompatibility toward pre-osteoblast MC3T3-E1 cells. In summary, the Fe-0.6Se alloy is promising for orthopedic applications owing to its unique combination of mechanical and biofunctional properties.