Doping gadolinium versus lanthanum into hydroxyapatite particles for better biocompatibility in bone marrow stem cells.

Lanthanide ions (Ln3+) doped hydroxyapatite (HAP) particles are well established in biomedical areas. Although Ln elements are closely located in the periodic table and have plenty of similar characteristics, the minor differences in the effective ionic radii could cause alterations in the physicochemical and biological properties of HAP substitutes. The present study synthesized lanthanum-(La-) and gadolinium-(Gd-) doped HAP particles (La-HAP and Gd-HAP). And the effects of two types of particles on bone marrow stem cells (BMSCs) viability were also measured and compared in vitro. The results indicated that the Gd-HAP adsorbed more serum proteins from culture media and inhibited the new layer of apatite formation on its surface when comparing to La-HAP with a similar crystalline structure, particle size, and Zeta potential. These surface modifications can significantly reduce the cell adhesion of Gd-HAP, simultaneously decreasing the Gd-HAP particle uptake efficiency. Moreover, the cell viability of Gd-HAP remained higher than that of La-HAP in culture periods. We concluded that a slight variation in the effective ionic radii between Gd3+ and La3+ could alter the adsorption of serum proteins on the particles' surface, modulating subsequent cellular responses. The present work provides an interesting view that Gd-HAP is endowed with better cellular biocompatibility than La-HAP.

Calcium phosphate nanoparticles are associated with inorganic phosphate-induced osteogenic differentiation of rat bone marrow stromal cells.

In the present study, we demonstrated that calcium phosphate (CaP) nanoparticles formed in cell culture media were implicated in the process of high inorganic phosphate (Pi) mediated osteogenic differentiation of rat bone marrow stromal cells (BMSCs). Exposure of BMSCs in vitro to high Pi-containing media reduced alkaline phosphatase (ALP) activity and the expressions of osteoblast-specific genes. The sediments of CaP nanoparticles were observed at the cell surface and some of them were concomitantly found inside cells at high Pi concentration. In addition, treatment the cells with pyrophosphate (PPi), an inhibitor of calcium crystal formation, abrogated the ALP activity induced by high Pi, suggesting the contribution of CaP nanoparticles. Moreover, for isolated CaP nanoparticles, there was a trend of conversion from amorphous calcium phosphate to hydroxyapatite with elevated Pi. The particle size of CaP increased and the surface morphology changed from spherical to irregular due to increased concentrations of serum proteins incorporated into CaP nanoparticles. The study demonstrated that those physicochemical properties of CaP nanoparticles played an important role in modulating BMSCs differentiation. Furthermore, the addition of Pi in the osteogenic media resulted in a dose-dependent increase in matrix mineralization, while treatment of the cells with PPi suppressed Pi-induced calcium deposition. The findings indicated that calcium deposition in the matrix partly came from the spontaneous precipitation of CaP nanoparticles.