Enhanced Release of Calcium Ions from Hydroxyapatite Nanoparticles with an Increase in Their Specific Surface Area

Synthetic calcium phosphates, e.g., hydroxyapatite (HAP) and tricalcium phosphate (TCP), are the most commonly used bone-graft materials due to their high chemical similarity to the natural hydroxyapatite—the inorganic component of bones. Calcium in the form of a free ion or bound complexes plays a key role in many biological functions, including bone regeneration. This paper explores the possibility of increasing the Ca(2+)-ion release from HAP nanoparticles (NPs) by reducing their size. Hydroxyapatite nanoparticles were obtained through microwave hydrothermal synthesis. Particles with a specific surface area ranging from 51 m(2)/g to 240 m(2)/g and with sizes of 39, 29, 19, 11, 10, and 9 nm were used in the experiment. The structure of the nanomaterial was also studied by means of helium pycnometry, X-ray diffraction (XRD), and transmission-electron microscopy (TEM). The calcium-ion release into phosphate-buffered saline (PBS) was studied. The highest release of Ca(2+) ions, i.e., 18 mg/L, was observed in HAP with a specific surface area 240 m(2)/g and an average nanoparticle size of 9 nm. A significant increase in Ca(2+)-ion release was also observed with specific surface areas of 183 m(2)/g and above, and with nanoparticle sizes of 11 nm and below. No substantial size dependence was observed for the larger particle sizes.