title: A novel amorphous calcium phosphate polymer ceramic for bone repair: I. Synthesis and characterization.
abstract: Traditional materials for bone repair or replacements such as autografts and allografts have a limited supply and other complications. Thus, alternative materials need to be explored. Three-dimensional, porous composites prepared from bioresorbable polymers and hydroxyapatite or other calcium phosphate ceramics are promising materials for the repair or replacement of diseased or damaged bone. However, in many cases the ceramic component of these composites is crystalline in nature, while bone apatite is made of a poorly crystalline, carbonated phosphate system. In this study, we synthesized a noncrystalline, carbonated calcium phosphate ceramic by carrying out the reaction within bioresorbable PLAGA microspheres using a modified emulsion/solvent evaporation technique, making each individual microsphere a composite. Sintering the composite microspheres together yielded a bioresorbable, porous, 3-dimensional scaffold that may be ideal for tissue ingrowth, making this composite scaffold potentially suitable for bone repair applications.
authors.affiliation: Center for Advanced Biomaterials and Tissue Engineering, Department of Chemical Engineering, Drexel University, 3141 Chestnut Street, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19104, USA.
authors.forename: A M
authors.initials: AM
authors.lastname: Ambrosio
authors.forename: J S
authors.initials: JS
authors.lastname: Sahota
authors.forename: Y
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Khan
authors.forename: C T
authors.initials: CT
authors.lastname: Laurencin
mesh_terms: D018786:Bone Substitutes / Q000138:chemical synthesis* / Q000737:chemistry; D002130:Calcium Phosphates / Q000138:chemical synthesis* / Q000737:chemistry; D002516:Ceramics / Q000138:chemical synthesis* / Q000737:chemistry; D006801:Humans; D066298:In Vitro Techniques; D008422:Materials Testing; D008855:Microscopy, Electron, Scanning; D008863:Microspheres; D010316:Particle Size; D014961:X-Ray Diffraction
chemical_list: D018786:Bone Substitutes; D002130:Calcium Phosphates; C485828:alpha-tricalcium phosphate; C519480:amorphous calcium phosphate; C485830:tetracalcium phosphate; C485838:calcium phosphate, monobasic, anhydrous; C020243:calcium phosphate; C485829:calcium phosphate, dibasic, anhydrous