Graphene coating on the surface of CoCrMo alloy enhances the adhesion and proliferation of bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells

Highlights: • An wet transfer approach for graphene film was improved successfully. • Quantitative analysis of adhesion force of graphene coating was performed firstly. • Graphene coating could enhance the adhesion and proliferation of BMSCs. • Graphene coating could improve the surface bioactivity of CoCrMo alloys. The objective was to investigate whether a graphene coating could improve the surface bioactivity of a cobalt-chromium-molybdenum-based alloy (CoCrMo). Graphene was produced by chemical vapor deposition and transferred to the surface of the CoCrMo alloy using an improved wet transfer approach. The morphology of the samples was observed, and the adhesion force and stabilization of graphene coating were analyzed by a nanoscratch test and ultrasonication test. In an in vitro study, the adhesion and proliferation of bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells (BMSCs) cultured on the samples were quantified via an Alamar Blue assay and cell counting kit-8 (CCK-8) assay. The results showed that it is feasible to apply graphene to modify the surface of a CoCrMo alloy, and the enhancement of the adhesion and proliferation of BMSCs was also shown in the present study. In conclusion, graphene exhibits considerable potential for enhancing the surface bioactivity of CoCrMo alloy.