Crystal structure studies of human dental apatite as a function of age.
Studies of the average crystal structure properties of human dental apatite as a function of age in the range of 5-87 years are reported. The crystallinity of the dental hydroxyapatite decreases with the age. The a-lattice constant that is associated with the carbonate content in carbonate apatite decreases with age in a systematic way, whereas the c-lattice constant does not change significantly. Thermogravimetric measurements demonstrate an increase of the carbonate content with the age. FTIR spectroscopy reveals both B and A-type carbonate substitutions with the B-type greater than the A-type substitution by a factor up to ~5. An increase of the carbonate content as a function of age can be deduced from the ratio of the nu(2)CO(3) to the nu(1)PO(4) IR modes.
Department of Physics and Center for Biological and Materials Physics, Florida Atlantic University, Boca Raton, FL 33431, USA.
Th
T
Leventouri
A
A
Antonakos
A
A
Kyriacou
R
R
Venturelli
E
E
Liarokapis
V
V
Perdikatsis