Surface modification of hydroxyapatite nanoparticles with thermal-responsive PNIPAM by ATRP

Hydroxyapatite (HA) nanoparticles grafted by poly(N-isopropylacrylamide) (PNIPAM) brushes (PNIPAM-g-HA) have been synthesized by the surface-initiated atom transfer radical polymerization (ATRP) of N-isopropylacrylamide (NIPAM). The surface grafting amount of PNIPAM ranges from 15.5% to 46.4%. PNIPAM-g-HA has been characterized by FT-IR spectroscopy, thermal gravimetric analysis, X-ray diffraction, and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The UV transmittance spectra and the particle size analysis of PNIPAM-g-HA in aqueous solution demonstrates that the PNIPAM-g-HA possess reversible thermal stimuli responsive properties. An in vitro bioactivity assessment indicates that PNIPAM-g-HA can induce the mineralization of Ca(2+) and HPO(4) (2-) and possesses an excellent bioactivity. The cell culture results show that the cells adhered to the surface of PNIPAM-g-HA grow better than on HA, and the area of the cells on the surface of PNIPAM-g-HA is much greater than for HA, which proves that the PNIPAM-g-HA has a better biocompatibility than HA.