In Vivo Evaluation of Strontium-Containing Nanostructured Carbonated Hydroxyapatite

The hydroxyapatite (HA) is a biocompatible and bioactive biomaterial used as bone substitute, however, the high crystallinity of HA and consequently its low solubility may be a limitation for its clinical use. In order to improve the biosorption of HA, the partial substitutions in the chemical structure and doping with small amounts of impurities have been study. The objective of this study was to evaluate the biocompatibility of 3% Zinc-containing nanostructured carbonated hydroxyapatite (ZncHA) compared with the carbonated hydroxyapatite (cHA), both synthesized at 37°C and non-sintered, using as control the stoichiometric HA microspheres in subcutaneous of mice. The X-ray Diffraction (XRD) and Vibrational Spectroscopy in Infra Red Fourier Transform (FTIR) were used to characterize the biomaterials. In vivo test was performed in BALB/c mice by implanting of HA, cHA and ZncHA spheres in the subcutaneous tissue for 1, and 9 weeks (n=5). The negative control consisted in incision without material implantation (Sham group). The samples were histological processed to descriptive analysis of biological effect. The microscopic analysis showed a similar granulation reaction between groups at the first experimental period. In 9 weeks there was a time dependent biosorption of cHA compared with other groups. In conclusion, the biomaterials tested were biocompatible and cHA group showed a significant biosorption in comparison with HA and ZncHA groups. The doping of zinc did not influence the biocompatibility of biomaterial, however, change the biosorption response