Osteoclastic resorption of biphasic calcium phosphate ceramicin vitro

Abstract

Neonatal rabbit bone cells were cultured for 1 and 4 days on biphasic calcium phosphate ceramic specimens to study the osteoclastic resorption of the ceramic. Scanning electron microscopic studies after removal of stromal cells with pronase E and EDTA revealed many osteoclast-associated lacunae on the ceramic surface. The degraded crystals inside the lacunae appeared to have been dissolved by acids. Cellular degradation of the ceramic was clearly due to the extracellular process characteristic of osteoclastic resorption.