Chapter 7.2 - Application of a Quartz Crystal Microbalance with Dissipation for In Situ Monitoring of Interfacial Phenomena between Bioceramics and Cells

Abstract

When bioceramics are implanted into a body, proteins in the fluid adsorb and subsequently cells adhere on the surface. To detect the structural characteristics at the interface between the surfaces and cells, a quartz crystal microbalance with dissipation (QCM-D) technique is one of excellent in situ analytical methods. The QCM-D detecting the interfacial phenomena with the protein adsorption and cell adhesion has been recently researched, and hydroxyapatite sensor surfaces fabricated by an electrophoretic method have been also studied for understanding the interface. The interfacial viscoelastic properties (shear viscosity, elastic shear modulus and tan δ ) of the interface were estimated using a Voigt-based viscoelastic model from the measured frequency (Δ f ) and dissipation shift (Δ D ) curves. The different cell adhesion process, interfacial viscoelasticity, and morphology depending on the surfaces were successfully evaluated by the QCM-D technique. This chapter summarized the studies on the QCM-D technique that clarify the interfacial phenomena between bioceramics and cells.