skip to main content
OSTI.GOV title logo U.S. Department of Energy
Office of Scientific and Technical Information

Title: Amelogenin Affects Brushite Crystal Morphology and Promotes Its Phase Transformation to Monetite

Journal Article · · Crystal Growth and Design

Amelogenin protein is involved in organized apatite crystallization during enamel formation. Brushite (CaHPO4·2H2O), which is one of the precursors for hydroxyapatite in in vitro mineralization, has been used for fabrication of biomaterials for hard tissue repair. In order to explore its potential application in biomimetic material synthesis, we studied the influence of amelogenin on brushite morphology and phase transformation to monetite. Our results show that amelogenin can adsorb onto surface of brushite, leading to the formation of layered structures on the (010) face. Amelogenin promoted the phase transformation of brushite into monetite (CaHPO4) in the dry state, presumably by interacting with crystalline water layers in brushite unit cell. Changes to the crystal morphology by amelogenin continued even after the phase transformation to monetite forming an organized nanotextured structure of nano-sticks resembling the bundle structure in enamel.

Research Organization:
Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States)
Sponsoring Organization:
USDOE
DOE Contract Number:
AC05-76RL01830
OSTI ID:
1340847
Report Number(s):
PNNL-SA-119028; 453060036
Journal Information:
Crystal Growth and Design, Vol. 16, Issue 9; ISSN 1528-7483
Publisher:
American Chemical Society
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English