Synthetic Calcium Phosphate Nanoparticles Mimetic of Bone Mineral: Similarities in Composition and Morphology

In this work, calcium phosphate particles were obtained from systems composed of Renex-100, hexanol, cyclohexane and Ca2+, PO4 3- and OH- aqueous solutions. Particles of chemical composition, crystalline structure, morphology and size similar to those of bone mineral were obtained by varying the composition of the components of the system. For comparison, the mineral phase of bone was obtained from parietal bone and femur of 15-day, 1-month and 1-year-old Wistar rats. Synthetic calcium phosphates and bone samples were analyzed by XRD, ICP/OES and electronic microscopy. The results show that, by controlling the composition of the surfactant system, it is possible to obtain particles of different morphologies and sizes, which are more similar to the particles that compose bone mineral. This similarity might indicate that the body makes use of systems to synthesize bone mineral. These systems might present properties similar to those of the systems studied in this work.