In-vitro biocompatibility, bioactivity and photoluminescence properties of Eu³⁺ /Sr²⁺ dual-doped nano-hydroxyapatite for biomedical applications.

Abstract

In the present investigation, we have successfully synthesized luminescent Eu³⁺ -doped and Eu³⁺ /Sr²⁺ codoped hydroxyapatite (HA) nanoparticles through sol-gel assisted precipitation method with the aim of developing novel biomaterials containing osteoblast mineral (Sr²⁺ ) and luminescence activator (Eu³⁺ ). The structure, morphology, thermal stability, and luminescence properties of the resultant spherical nanoparticles (50-100 nm diameters) were studied. Moreover, the in-vitro bioactivity of Eu_0.1 Sr_0.1 HA nanoparticles was investigated by immersing in the simulated body fluid for many weeks. The antimicrobial activity results against gram positive and gram negative bacterial stains, showed better resistivity for the Eu_0.1 Sr_0.1 HA among the other compositions. The MTT [3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide] assay of live/dead cells cultured with Eu³⁺ /Sr²⁺ -doped HA nanoparticles retained its normal morphology and did not show a significant impact on cell proliferation at various incubation days, which evidence for the material's superior biocompatible nature even at a higher concentration of 375 µg/mL. Thus, the incorporation of dual ions in HA nanoparticles with strong luminescence properties develops potential biomaterial for live cell imaging and in nanomedicine. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Biomed Mater Res Part B: Appl Biomater, 106B: 2191-2201, 2018.