| Summary: | As a result of their close similarities to the inorganic mineral components of human bone, hydroxyapatite nanoparticles (n-HAp) are widely used in biomedical applications and for the elaboration of biocompatible scaffold drug delivery systems for bone tissue engineering. In this context, a new efficient and economic procedure was used for the consolidation of n-HAp in the presence of various <i>Nigella sativa</i> (<i>NS</i>) fractions at a near-room temperature. The research conducted in the present study focuses on the physicochemical properties of loaded n-HAp 3D scaffolds by <i>NS</i> fractions and the in vitro antibacterial activity against Gram-negative (<i>Escherichia coli</i> ATCC 25922, <i>Pseudomonas aeruginosa</i> ATCC 27853, <i>Klebsiella pneumoniae</i> ATCC 27853), and Gram-positive (<i>Staphylococcus aureus</i> ATCC 29213, <i>Enterococcus faecalis</i> ATCC 700603) bacteria. In order to better understand the effect of the inserted fractions on the HAp molecular structure, the elaborated samples were subject to Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) and X-ray diffraction (XRD) spectroscopic analyses. In addition, the morphological investigation by scanning electron microscope (SEM) of the loaded n-HAp 3D scaffolds demonstrated the presence of a porous structure, which is generally required in stimulating bone regeneration. Furthermore, the fabricated 3D composites exhibited significant antibacterial activity against all tested bacteria. Indeed, MIC values ranging from 5 mg/mL to 20 mg/mL were found for the HAp-Ethanol fraction (HAp-Et) and HAp-Hexane fraction (HAp-Hex), while the HAp-Aqueous fraction (HAp-Aq) and HAp-Methanol fraction (HAp-Me) showed values between 20 mg/mL and 30 mg/mL on the different strains. These results suggest that the HAp-<i>NS</i> scaffolds were effective as a drug delivery system and have very promising applications in bone tissue engineering.
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