In this study, a novel porous ceramic material is introduced and investigated for basic biocompatibility and possible application as bone graft. The material is a sintered compound of the volcanic silicate perlite and rutile TiO2, with a macrostructure of interconnecting accessible pores. It is both inexpensive and easy to manufacture. Since perlite has not been used as a biomaterial before, we first investigated the material for corrosion and leaching of trace elements under extended incubation in saline for 21 days. No significant corrosion was noted. The supernatants did not contain critical concentrations of potentially toxic trace elements. Basic biocompatibility of the material was tested by incubating murine L929 fibroblasts in material-conditioned medium for 24 h. No cytotoxicity was noted. Complement activation was assayed employing a model of anticoagulated human full blood. An uncritical elevation of C5a was observed. In an additional in vitro model, primary human osteoblast-like cells were seeded directly onto samples of the material and its constituent components and incubated for 9 days. The material and samples of its constituent components sustained human osteoblast attachment and proliferation and did not induce a critical expression of inflammatory cytokines. We conclude that Ecopore is highly biocompatible and suitable for bone grafting
