Structural and Spectroscopic Investigation of Biomimetic Composites—Promising Agents for the Remineralization of Native Dental Tissue

Abstract

Biomimetic materials (biocomposites) with an organic-mineral composition related to natural dental tissues (enamel and dentin) are obtained for the first time and their structural and optical characteristics are studied. It is demonstrated by a complex of structural and spectroscopic methods that in the formation of biocomposites, the introduced organic component, bearing a number of amino acids, does not affect the structure of the inorganic component (carbonate-substituted calcium hydroxyapatite) of the sample. The carbonate-substituted calcium hydroxyapatite synthesized using a biogenic source of calcium, which forms the basis of the biocomposite, has a luminescence spectrum similar to that of apatite tooth enamel. The spectrum of the intact dentin of a human tooth has a broader luminescence band than that for the enamel spectrum. It is determined that both organic and inorganic components contribute to the dentin luminescence band. The features found in the luminescence spectra of intact tissues and in simulating biocomposites can be used to develop a procedure for effective early diagnosis of the demineralization of hard dental tissues and general dental examination.