Introducing the crystalline phase of dicalcium phosphate monohydrate.
basic_science · Level V
Where this comes from
- Record sourced from PubMed, PMID 32210234.
- Also identified by DOI 10.1038/s41467-020-15333-6 and PMC identifier 7093545.
- Licence recorded as CC BY.
- The licence permits redistribution, so the abstract is shown in full and the full text is available from the publisher.
Abstract
Calcium orthophosphates (CaPs) are important in geology, biomineralization, animal metabolism and biomedicine, and constitute a structurally and chemically diverse class of minerals. In the case of dicalcium phosphates, ever since brushite (CaHPO<sub>4</sub>·2H<sub>2</sub>O, dicalcium phosphate dihydrate, DCPD) and monetite (CaHPO<sub>4</sub>, dicalcium phosphate, DCP) were first described in 19<sup>th</sup> century, the form with intermediary chemical formula CaHPO<sub>4</sub>·H<sub>2</sub>O (dicalcium phosphate monohydrate, DCPM) has remained elusive. Here, we report the synthesis and crystal structure determination of DCPM. This form of CaP is found to crystallize from amorphous calcium hydrogen phosphate (ACHP) in water-poor environments. The crystal structure of DCPM is determined to show a layered structure with a monoclinic symmetry. DCPM is metastable in water, but can be stabilized by organics, and has a higher alkalinity than DCP and DCPD. This study serves as an inspiration for the future exploration of DCPM's potential role in biomineralization, or biomedical applications.
Medical subject headings
- Biomineralization
- Calcium Phosphates