Progress on the preparation of nanocrystalline apatites and surface characterization: Overview of fundamental and applied aspects
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Gómez-Morales, Jaime; Iafisco, Michele; Delgado López, José Manuel; Sarda, Stephanie; Drouet, ChristopheEditorial
Elsevier
Date
2013Referencia bibliográfica
Published version: Progress in Crystal Growth and Characterization of Materials 59 (2013) 1–46. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pcrysgrow.2012.11.001
Abstract
Nanocrystalline calcium phosphate apatites constitute the main
inorganic part of hard tissues, and a growing focus is devoted to
prepare synthetic analogs, so-called “biomimetic”, able to precisely
mimic the morphological and physico-chemical features of bio-
logical apatite compounds. Both from fundamental and applied
viewpoints, an accurate characterization of nanocrystalline
apatites, including their peculiar surface features, and a deep
knowledge of crystallization aspects are prerequisites to attempt
understanding mineralization phenomena in vivo as well as for
designing innovative bioactive materials that may then find
applications in bone tissue engineering, either as self-supported
scaffolds and fillers or in the form of coatings, but also in other
domains such as drug delivery or else medical imaging. Also,
interfacial phenomena are of prime importance for getting a better
insight of biomineralization and for following the behavior of
biomaterials in or close to their final conditions of use. In this view,
both adsorption and ion exchange represent essential processes
involving the surface of apatite nanocrystals, possibly doped with
foreign elements or functionalized with organic molecules of interest. In this review paper, we will address these various points
in details based on a large literature survey. We will also underline
the fundamental physico-chemical and behavioral differences that
exist between nanocrystalline apatites (whether of biological
origin or their synthetic biomimetic analogs) and stoichiometric
hydroxyapatite.