Preparation and characterization of hydroxyapatite nanoparticles doped with nickel, tin, and molybdate ions for their antimicrobial effects

Abstract

Background Hydroxyapatite (HAp) nanoparticles doped with some ions have shown anticancer and antibacterial properties and are of great interest for the development of new biomedical applications. Therefore, the present study aimed to investigate the preparation and in vitro characterization of HAp nanoparticles doped with (Ni2+), tin (Sn2+), molybdate (Mo3+) ions for prevention of infections specially in bone tissue engineering. Methods HAp and HAp nanocrystal powders doped with nickel (Ni2+), tin (Sn2+), molybdate ions (Mo3+) with concentrations of 500, 1000, and 2000 ppm were prepared by the sol-gel method using a combination of calcium nitrate and phosphorous pentoxide as chemical reagents. The nanoparticles were characterized by FT-IR, XRD, EDAX and SEM. Their antimicrobial effect was studied by disk diffusion method on two types of bacteria: Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Staphylococcus aureus. Results FT-IR and XRD tests confirmed the formation of HAp nanoparticles. SEM images showed the morphology and nanostructure of HAp and Ni@HAp. Ni@HAp showed significantly more antimicrobial effects than the other two ions on S. aureus. EDAX confirmed the presence of Ni2+ ions in the Ni@HAp structure and the element map also showed very good dispersion of elements in both HAp and Ni@HAp structures. Conclusions HAp nanoparticles doped with nickel ions may be considered as a promising antibacterial treatment in bone tissue engineering and repairing of skeletal injuries contaminated with S. aureus.