Organic/inorganic bioactive materials part III: In vitro bioactivity of gelatin/silicocarnotite hybrids

Abstract

In this work we present our experimental results on synthesis, structure evolution and in vitro bioactivity assessment of new gelatin/ silicocarnotite hybrid materials. The hybrids were obtained by diluting gelatin (G) and silicocarnotite (S) ceramic powder with G:S ratios of 75:25 and 25:75 wt.% in hot (40°C) water. The hybrids were characterized using XRD, FTIR, SEM/EDS and XPS. FTIR depicts that the "red shift" of amide I and COO- could be attributed to the fact that the gelatin prefers to chelate Ca2+ from S. The growth of calcium phosphates on the surface of the hybrids synthesized and then immersed in 1.5 SBF for 3 days was studied by using of FTIR, XRD and SEM/EDS. According to FTIR results, after an immersion of 3 days, A and B-type CO3HA can be observed on the surface. XRD results indicate the presence of hydroxyapatite with well defined crystallinity. SEM/EDS of the precipitated layers show the presence of CO3HA and amorphous calcium phosphate on the surface of samples with different G/S content when immersed in 1.5 SBF. XPS of the G/S hybrid with 25:75 wt.% proved the presence of Ca-deficient hydroxyapatite after an in vitro test for 3 days. © Versita Warsaw and Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg 2009.