A crystallinity study of dental tissues and tartar by infrared spectroscopy

J.A. ABRAHAM; H.J. SÁNCHEZ; C.A. MARCELLI; M.S. GRENÓN; M.C. GUIDI; M. PICCININI

ANALYTICAL AND BIOANALYTICAL CHEMISTRY

SPRINGER HEIDELBERG

Año: 2011 vol. 399 p. 1699 - 1704

1618-2642

This work presents the study on an important parameter of biomineralized phases, the crystallinity, based on previous results on synthetic apatite. The crystallinity is not only an important figure to understand biomineralization, but it¡¦s also related to the maturation and growing mechanisms of calcium phosphates in biological surrounding. We studied two kinds of samples, teeth as an example of biomineralized tissues and dental calculi (adhered) as an example of mineralization without participation of biological agents, except possibly by bacteria. The investigation is focused on the study of ?Þ1-?Þ3 infrared absorption bands of PO43¡V phosphates. We use the ATR (Attenuated Total Reflection) analytical method to examine human dental tissues and tartars on several samples. The results confirm for the first time previous assumptions on growing and maturation of dental calculi, i.e., the crystallinity progress from regions of high degree of crystallinity to the lower ones and in addition, its quantification with spatial resolution on the sample. A gradual pattern was observed in dental calculus. As other result obtained from the present study, cementum and dentine showed a similar crystallinity degree, despite of their different biological and mechanical functions.