Nanocomposites and nanomaterials

Hydroxyapatite-based composite modified by magnetite and chitosan for medical application

Synytsia A.1, Sych O.1, Iatsenko A.2, Babutina T.1, Bykov O.1, Tomila T.1, Olifan O.1, Boshytska N.1

1 Department of Functional Materials for Medical Application, Frantsevich Institute for Problems of Materials Science of NAS of Ukraine.
Krzhyzhanovsky Str., 3, Kyiv-03142, Ukraine.
E-mail: synytsia.ann@gmail.com
2 Department of Chemical Technology of Ceramics and Glass, National Technical University of Ukraine "Igor Sikorsky Kyiv Polytechnic Institute".
Peremogy Ave., 37, Kyiv-03056, Ukraine.

Hydroxyapatite as a biomaterial has been widely used due to its high biocompatibility and chemical similarity to natural bone. It is a basis for creation a variety of medical materials, including composites with magnetite and chitosan.
Magnetite is known to provide magnetic properties that could potentially be used for drug delivery, medical imaging, or hyperthermia-based cancer therapy for which pure hydroxyapatite is unsuitable. Several new studies show that exposure to magnetic fields can stimulate the proliferation and differentiation of osteoblasts to increase osseointegration and accelerate the formation of new bone. To increase biocompatibility, the magnet particles are coated with a layer of biopolymer of natural origin - chitosan. Chitosan exhibits antibacterial and antifungal activity and stimulates the immune system by activating macrophages.
In our study, magnetite nanoparticles were obtained by co-precipitation of hydrates of ferric chloride (FeCl3 · 6H2O and FeCl2 · 4H2O). Modification of the magnetite surface was performed by adding 1% chitosan solution to suspended Fe3O4 nanoparticles to form a ferrogel solution. The three-component hydroxyapatite/magnetite/chitosan composite was obtained by adding hydroxyapatite powder during the crosslinking step to the obtained Fe3O4 nanoparticle ferrogel.
The properties of the prepared composite were investigated by X-ray diffraction analysis, IR spectroscopy and scanning electron microscopy.
The obtained results show that the hydroxyapatite-based composite modified by magnetite and chitosan can be promising for use in medical practice for bone tissue engineering due to the synergistic effect of its components.