Structural Features of Ectopic Bone-like Tissue in Porous Hydroxyapatite Blocks

Calcium phosphate ceramics are widely used as bone substitutes because of their favorable biocompatibility and osteoconductivity. Some studies have reported that porous hydroxyapatite (HA), with its special structure, implanted at ectopic (non-bone) sites, exhibits osteoinductive activity. However, few studies have examined the detailed ultrastructure of mineralized tissue formed in biomaterials like HA. Therefore, it is important to examine whether the mineralized tissue exhibits structural characteristics of normal bone tissue. Thus, in this study, we subcutaneously implanted hydroxyapatite blocks (5 x 5 x 7 mm) into the backs of adult dogs, and performed detailed morphological examination of the bone-like tissue formed, which showed a lamellar structure. Immunohistochemical staining revealed that the matrix fibers of the bone-like tissue were mainly composed of type I collagen. The pattern of crystal deposition in matrix fibers and the structure of osteoblast-, osteocyte-, bone-lining-, and osteoclast-like cells were similar to those of normal bone tissue and osteogenic cells, respectively. These results indicate that cellular events observed in normal bone formation and remodeling occur in bone-like tissue as well, and suggest that bone-like tissue in HA blocks is very similar to bone tissue.