[Self-setting apatite cement. 8. Dissolution and remineralization behavior of 45Ca-apatite cement]

Self-setting apatite cement hardens into a mass of single phase apatite when mixed with diluted phosphoric acid. Structurally this mass consists of two types of apatite, i.e. the seed apatite used as a setting accelerator and the matrix apatite formed afterward in the reaction of dicalcium phosphate dihydrate (DCPD) and tetracalcium phosphate (Te-CP). To investigate the dissolution behavior of self-setting apatite cement in detail, two types of 45Ca labeled apatite cement were prepared. In one, the seed apatite was labeled with 45Ca (45Ca-HAp cement) and in the other the matrix apatite was labeled with 45Ca through use of 45Ca-DCPD (45Ca-DCPD cement). Solubility, estimated from the concentration of 45Ca released in 1 mM of organic acid (e.q. acetic, lactic, or citric acid) with initial pH adjusted to 4.0 at 37 degrees C, was approximately zero for 45Ca-HAp cement, whereas the solubility of 45Ca-DCPD cement was approximately the same as unlabeled cements used so far. This finding suggests that dissolution of the matrix apatite governs dissolution of the set cement, though comparison of X-ray diffraction patterns and electron micrographs of the seed apatite and apatite in the set cement showed no essential difference in crystallinity and crystal shape. The fact that the matrix apatite was formed by enveloping the seed apatite may account for the preferential dissolution of matrix apatite. In synthetic saliva labeled with 45Ca having a degree of supersaturation with respect to apatite comparable to rest saliva, 45Ca concentration in solution decreased once the cement pellet was introduced.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)