M. Palanichamy

Influence of iron and temperature on the crystallization of calcium phosphates at the physiological pH

Abstract The effect of iron and temperature on the crystallization of dicalcium phosphate dihydrate (CaHPO 4 ·2H 2 O, DCPD) in agarose was studied at various temperatures (27, 37 and 47 °C) at the physiological pH (7.4) by the single diffusion method. The spherulitic crystals of hydroxyapatite with a diameter of about 3 mm were observed in the presence of Fe at temperature of 47 °C. The spherulites consisted of thin, elongated needlelike crystals. Quantification of the iron incorporated in the crystals was carried out by elemental analysis. The crystals were characterized by XRD, FTIR and SEM techniques.

Preparation of thermally stable nanocrystalline hydroxyapatite by hydrothermal method

Thermally stable hydroxyapatite (HAp) was synthesized by hydrothermal method in the presence of malic acid. X-ray diffraction (XRD), Fourier transform infra-red spectroscopy (FT-IR), Raman spectroscopy, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), differential thermal analysis (DTA), thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) was done on the synthesized powders. These analyses confirmed the sample to be free from impurities and other phases of calcium phosphates, and were of rhombus morphology along with nanosized particles. IR and Raman analyses indicated the adsorption of malic acid on HAp. Thermal stability of the synthesized HAp was confirmed by DTA and TGA. The synthesized powders were thermally stable upto 1,400°C and showed no phase change. The proposed method might be useful for producing thermally stable HAp which is a necessity for high temperature coating applications.

Effect of solvent; enhancing the wettability and engineering the porous structure of a calcium phosphate/agarose composite for drug delivery

Tissue engineering deals with the regeneration of tissues for bone repair, wound healing, drug delivery, etc., and a highly porous 3D artificial scaffold is required to accommodate the cells and direct their growth. We prepared 3D porous calcium phosphate ((hydroxyapatite/β-tricalcium phosphate)/agarose, (HAp/β-TCP)/agarose) composite scaffolds by sol–gel technique with water (WBS) and ethanol (EBS) as solvents. The crystalline phases of HAp and β-TCP in the scaffolds were confirmed by X-ray diffraction (XRD) analysis. The EBS had reduced crystallinity and crystallite size compared to WBS. WBS and EBS revealed interconnected pores of 1 μm and 100 nm, respectively. The swelling ratio was higher for EBS in water and phosphate buffered saline (PBS). An in vitro drug loading/release experiment was carried out on the scaffolds using gentamicin sulphate (GS) and amoxicillin (AMX). We observed initial burst release followed by sustained release from WBS and EBS. In addition, GS showed more extended release than AMX from both the scaffolds. GS and AMX loaded scaffolds showed greater efficacy against Pseudomonas than Bacillus species. WBS exhibited enhanced mechanical properties, wettability, drug loading and haemocompatibility compared to EBS. In vitro cell studies showed that over the scaffolds, MC3T3 cells attached and proliferated and there was a significant increase in live MC3T3 cells. Both scaffolds supported MC3T3 proliferation and mineralization in the absence of osteogenic differentiation supplements in media which proves the scaffolds are osteoconducive. Microporous scaffolds (WBS) could assist the bone in-growth, whereas the presence of nanopores (EBS) could enhance the degradation process. Hence, WBS and EBS could be used as scaffolds for tissue engineering and drug delivery. This is a cost effective technique to produce scaffolds of degradable 3D ceramic–polymer composites.