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Biomedical subjects

Masakazu Kawashita

Publications and source records attributed to Masakazu Kawashita.

12 recordsLinked to original sources

Enzymatic preparation of hollow magnetite microspheres for hyperthermic treatment of cancer.

Ferrimagnetic materials can be expected to be useful as thermal seeds for hyperthermic treatment of cancer, especially where the cancer is located in deep parts of body, as they can generate heat by magnetic hysteretic loss when they are placed in an alternating magnetic field. In this study, hollow magnetite (Fe(3)O(4)) particles were prepared using an enzymatic reaction of urease. A hollow particle was obtained by using a Pasteur pipette. The particle was 500 microm in size and was composed of Fe(3)O(4). Its saturation magnetization and coercive force were 57 emuxg(-1) and 183 Oe, respectively. Its heat generation under an alternating magnetic field of 300 Oe at 100 kHz was estimated to be 45 Wxg(-1). Microspheres 30 microm in diameter were also successfully obtained by using a spray gun.

Biocompatible Materials↗

Formation of bone-like apatite on organic polymers treated with a silane-coupling agent and a titania solution.

Polyethylene terephthalate (PET), ethylene-vinyl alcohol copolymer (EVOH) and Nylon 6 in plate form were treated with silane-coupling agents, a titanium alkoxide-alcohol solution and a hot HCl solution to form a thin crystalline titanium oxide layer. When placed in a simulated body fluid with ion concentrations nearly equal to those of the human blood plasma, nanosized bone-like apatite formed uniformly on the surfaces of these treated polymers: within 2 days for PET and Nylon 6, and 7 days for EVOH. This indicates that such titania-modified polymers might form bone-like apatite in the living body, and bond to living bone through this apatite layer. Three-dimensional fabrics of these polymer fibers, with open spaces in various sizes, are expected to be useful as bone substitutes, as they will be integrated with the natural bone.

Apatites↗

Preparation of ferrimagnetic magnetite microspheres for in situ hyperthermic treatment of cancer.

Ferrimagnetic microspheres 20-30 microm in diameter are useful as thermoseeds for inducing hyperthermia in cancers, especially for tumors located deep inside the body. The microspheres are entrapped in the capillary bed of the tumors when they are implanted through blood vessels and heat cancers locally by their hysteresis loss when placed under an alternating magnetic field. In the present study, preparation of magnetite (Fe(3)O(4)) microspheres 20-30 microm in diameter was attempted by melting powders in high-frequency induction thermal plasma, and by precipitation from aqueous solution. The microspheres prepared by melting powders in high-frequency induction thermal plasma were composed of a large amount of Fe(3)O(4) and a small amount of wustite (FeO), and those subsequently heat treated at 600 degrees C for 1 h under 5.1 x 10(3) Pa were fully composed of Fe(3)O(4) 1 microm in size. The saturation magnetization and coercive force of the heat-treated microspheres were 92 emu g(-1) and 50 Oe, respectively. The heat generation of the heat-treated microspheres was estimated to be 10 Wg(-1), under 300 Oe and 100 kHz. The microspheres prepared by precipitation from aqueous solution consisted of beta-FeOOH, and those subsequently heat treated at 400 degrees C for 1 h in a 70% CO(2) + 30% H(2) atmosphere consisted of Fe(3)O(4) crystals 50 nm in size. The saturation magnetization and coercive force of the heat-treated microspheres were 53 emu g(-1) and 156 Oe, respectively. The heat generation of the heat-treated microspheres was estimated to be 41 Wg(-1), under 300 Oe and 100 kHz. The latter microspheres are believed to be promising thermoseeds for hyperthermic treatment of cancer.

Animals↗

Apatite formation on non-woven fabric of carboxymethylated chitin in SBF.

Chitin fibres constituting a non-woven fabric were carboxymethylated in monochloro acetic acid and treated with saturated Ca(OH)(2) aqueous solution. Within 3 days in a simulated body fluid with pH value and ion concentrations nearly equal to those of human blood plasma, a bonelike apatite layer formed on the surface of fibres of the treated fabric. The apatite-chitin fibre composite thus prepared is expected to be useful as a flexible bioactive bone-repairing material.

Adsorption↗

Apatite-forming ability and mechanical properties of PTMO-modified CaO-SiO2-TiO2 hybrids derived from sol-gel processing.

Hydrolysis and polycondensation of triethoxysilane end-capped Poly (tetramethylene oxide) (Si-PTMO), tetraethoxysilane (TEOS), tetraisopropyltitanate (TiPT) and calcium nitrate (Ca(NO(3))(2)) gave transparent monolithics of PTMO-modified CaO-SiO(2)-TiO(2) hybrids. The samples with (TiPT)/(TEOS+TiPT) molar ratios from 0 to 0.20 under constant ratio of (Si-PTMO)/(TEOS+TiPT) of 2/3 in weight were prepared. It was found that the incorporation of TiO(2) component into a PTMO-CaO-SiO(2) hybrid results in an increase in the apatite-forming ability in a simulated body fluid: the hybrids with (TiPT)/(TEOS+TiPT) of 0.10 and 0.20 in mol formed an apatite on their surfaces within only 0.5 day. It seemed that, within the range of compositions studied, the TiO(2) content little affects the overall mechanical properties: Young's modulus were 52-55MPa, tensile strength, 7-9MPa, and strain at failure, about 30%. Thus, the organic-inorganic hybrids exhibiting both fairly high apatite-forming ability and high capability for deformation were obtained. These hybrid materials may be useful as new kind of bioactive bone-repairing materials.

Body Fluids↗

Surface potential change in bioactive titanium metal during the process of apatite formation in simulated body fluid.

Bioactive titanium metal can be prepared by NaOH and heat treatments that present the metal with a graded bioactive surface layer of amorphous sodium titanate. This study used laser electrophoresis together with transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and energy-dispersive X-ray microanalysis (EDX) to relate the surface potential change of the bioactive titanium metal with its surface structural change in simulated body fluid (SBF). The surface potential of the metal was highly negative immediately after immersion in SBF. With increasing soaking time, the surface potential increased, revealing a maximum positive value, and then decreased to a constant negative value. TEM-EDX showed that immediately after immersion in SBF, the metal surface formed Ti-OH groups by exchanging Na(+) ions in the surface sodium titanate with H3O(+) ions in the fluid. Thereafter, with increasing soaking time the metal surface formed an amorphous calcium titanate, then an amorphous calcium phosphate, and, finally, apatite with bone-like composition and structure. These results indicate that the process of apatite formation on bioactive titanium metal is initiated by the formation of Ti-OH groups with negative charges that interact with calcium ions with positive charges to form calcium titanate. The calcium titanate gains a positive charge and later interacts with phosphate ions with negative charges, forming amorphous calcium phosphate. The amorphous calcium phosphate eventually transforms and stabilizes into bone-like crystalline apatite with a negative charge.

Apatites↗

Preparation of antibacterial silver-doped silica glass microspheres.

Various types of inorganic substances doped with silver ions have been developed as antibacterial materials, and some have already been commercialized. Colorless and chemically durable materials that slowly release silver ions are, however, still need to be developed. The present authors have previously shown that when a silica glass doped with silver and aluminium ions is prepared using the sol-gel method, the resultant product is colorless, chemically durable, and slowly releases silver ions into water over a long period. The doped silica glass takes a form of microspheres <1 microm in diameter, it is easily mixed with organic polymers, and the mixture can be formed into a thin film or fine fibers, etc. We report on the preparation of silver doped silica glass microspheres having a diameter =1 microm, using the sol-gel method. Initially, tetraethoxysilane was partially prehydrolyzed by water in ethanol, and then aluminium triisopropoxide was added to the solution to form Si-O-Al bonds. Finally, an ammonia solution containing silver nitrate was added to form silica microspheres doped with silver ion together with aluminium ions. The results show monodispersed microspheres 0.4-0.6 microm in diameter were obtained with nominal compositions of Si/Al/Ag = 1/0.01-0.03/0.003-0.03, with a molar ratio of Al/Ag = 1-3.3. The microspheres were colorless, showed a high chemical durability, and slowly released silver ions into water at 37 degrees C. Microspheres with the composition Si/Al/Ag = 1/0.01/0.01 showed excellent antibacterial activity against Escherichia coli. The minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) of the microspheres was 400, which is less than the MIC value (800) of commercial antibacterial materials.

Anti-Bacterial Agents↗

Apatite-forming ability and mechanical properties of CaO-free poly(tetramethylene oxide) (PTMO)-TiO2 hybrids treated with hot water.

Poly(tetramethylene oxide) (PTMO)-TiO(2) hybrids were prepared by a sol-gel method from triethoxysilane-functionalized PTMO (Si-PTMO) and tetraisopropyltitanate with weight ratios of 30/70, 40/60 and 50/50 (hybrids PT30, PT40 and PT50, respectively), and subsequently subjected to a hot-water treatment at 95 degrees C for 2 d. All the obtained hybrids were amorphous before the hot-water treatment, and precipitated nanosized anatase after the hot-water treatment. The amount of precipitated anatase increased with decreasing PTMO content. Apatite was not formed on the surfaces of the hybrids in a simulated body fluid before the hot-water treatment, but was formed after the hot-water treatment, and its amount increased with decreasing PTMO content. Hybrid PT40 showed strength and Young's modulus analogous to those of human cancellous bones, and high ductility after the hot-water treatment. This kind of hybrid is expected to be useful as a new type of bone-repairing material.

Apatites↗

Bonelike apatite formation on ethylene-vinyl alcohol copolymer modified with silane coupling agent and calcium silicate solutions.

An ethylene-vinyl alcohol copolymer (EVOH) was treated with a silane coupling agent and calcium silicate solutions, and then soaked in a simulated body fluid (SBF) with ion concentrations approximately equal to those of human blood plasma. A smooth and uniform bonelike apatite layer was successfully formed on both the EVOH plate and the EVOH-knitted fibers in SBF within 2 days. Part of the structure of the resulting apatite-EVOH fiber composite was similar to that of natural bone. If this kind of composite can be fabricated into a three-dimensional structure similar to natural bone, the resultant composite is expected to exhibit both mechanical properties analogous to those of natural bone and bone-bonding ability. Hence, it has great potential as a bone substitute.

Apatites↗

Novel bioactive materials with different mechanical properties.

Some ceramics, such as Bioglass, sintered hydroxyapatite, and glass-ceramic A-W, spontaneously bond to living bone. They are called bioactive materials and are already clinically used as important bone substitutes. However, compared with human cortical bone, they have lower fracture toughness and higher elastic moduli. Therefore, it is desirable to develop bioactive materials with improved mechanical properties. All the bioactive materials mentioned above form a bone-like apatite layer on their surfaces in the living body, and bond to bone through this apatite layer. The formation of bone-like apatite on artificial material is induced by functional groups, such as Si-OH, Ti-OH, Zr-OH, Nb-OH, Ta-OH, -COOH, and PO(4)H(2). These groups have specific structures revealing negatively charge, and induce apatite formation via formations of an amorphous calcium compound, e.g., calcium silicate, calcium titanate, and amorphous calcium phosphate. These fundamental findings provide methods for preparing new bioactive materials with different mechanical properties. Tough bioactive materials can be prepared by the chemical treatment of metals and ceramics that have high fracture toughness, e.g., by the NaOH and heat treatments of titanium metal, titanium alloys, and tantalum metal, and by H(3)PO(4) treatment of tetragonal zirconia. Soft bioactive materials can be synthesized by the sol-gel process, in which the bioactive silica or titania is polymerized with a flexible polymer, such as polydimethylsiloxane or polytetramethyloxide, at the molecular level to form an inorganic-organic nano-hybrid. The biomimetic process has been used to deposit nano-sized bone-like apatite on fine polymer fibers, which were textured into a three-dimensional knit framework. This strategy is expected to ultimately lead to bioactive composites that have a bone-like structure and, hence, bone-like mechanical properties.

Animals↗

Apatite-forming ability and mechanical properties of PTMO-modified CaO-SiO2 hybrids prepared by sol-gel processing: effect of CaO and PTMO contents.

Transparent monolithics of triethoxysilane end-capped poly(tetramethylene oxide) (Si-PTMO)-modified CaO-SiO2 hybrids were successfully synthesized by hydrolysis and polycondensation of Si-PTMO, tetraethoxysilane (TEOS) and calcium nitrate. As for the samples with varying (Ca(NO3)2)/(TEOS) molar ratios under constant ratio of (Si-PTMO)/(TEOS) of 2/3 in weight. the apatite-forming ability in a simulated body fluid (SBF) which is indicative of bioactivity. remarkably increased with increasing CaO content, although the tensile strength and Young's modulus decreased. The hybrid with (Ca(NO3)2)/(TEOS) = 0.15 in mol formed an apatite on its surface within only 1 day. For this series of samples, the strain at failure which is a measure of capability for deformation of material, was found to be about 30% and almost independent of CaO content. As for the samples with varying (Si-PTMO)/(TEOS) weight ratios under constant ratio of (Ca(NO3)2)/(TEOS) of 0.15 in mol, the strain at failure increased with increasing Si-PTMO content, but the apatite-forming ability, tensile strength and Young's modulus decreased. Thus, the synthesis of the hybrids exhibiting both high apatite-forming ability and high extensibility can be achieved by selecting suitable CaO and Si-PTMO contents. These new kind of hybrid materials may be useful as bioactive bone-repairing materials.

Apatites↗