Comprehensive in vitro studies of novel sol gel-derived Zr4+/Zn2+ co-substituted bioactive glass with enhanced biological properties for bone healing

•Novel multifunctional Zr/Zn incorporated 58S BGs were successfully synthesized.•The in vitro hydroxyapatite formation was confirmed after 7 days of immersion in SBF.•The antibacterial studies showed ~ 5-10% reduction in resistivity of MRSA bacteria.•Live/Dead and Dapi/Actin confirmed increased quantity of live cells and their nuclei.•The BG with 5 mol% ZrO2 and 2 mol% ZnO (ZZ2) was considered as the optimal specimen. The synergetic osteogenic effects of zirconium (Zr) and zinc (Zn) along with bioactive glasses (BGs) have been proposed for bone implantation. We incorporated Zn into Zr-modified 58S-BG (Zr content: 5 mol. %) and characterized the structural, morphological, biological, and antibacterial properties of the proposed composite using various methods. Energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy analysis showed the calcium to phosphate ratio of ~1.68, after one week of conditioning in SBF. Biological assays also revealed a higher stimulating effect of the biomaterial composite on the proliferation and osteogenic response of osteoblast-like cells compared to only BGs. Antibacterial studies showed ~ 5-10% reduction in resistivity of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus Aureus (MRSA) bacteria against the biomaterial composite in comparison to the control specimen. The incorporation of Zn led to potential outlooks for implantations instead of Zn-free specimens since they promoted the cell proliferation of MC3T3 cells as well as resistivity toward MRSA bacteria.