Unlocking the potential of amorphous calcium carbonate: A star ascending in the realm of biomedical application.
10.1016/j.apsb.2023.08.027
- Author:
Han LIU
1
;
Zhiyang WEN
1
;
Zihan LIU
1
;
Yanfang YANG
1
;
Hongliang WANG
1
;
Xuejun XIA
1
;
Jun YE
1
;
Yuling LIU
1
Author Information
1. State Key Laboratory of Bioactive Substance and Function of Natural Medicines, Institute of Materia Medica, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences & Peking Union Medical College, Beijing 100050, China.
- Publication Type:Review
- Keywords:
Acid sensitivity;
Amorphous calcium carbonate;
Calcium supplement;
Drug delivery system;
Nanoparticle;
Tissue engineering;
Tumor therapy;
Water instability
- From:
Acta Pharmaceutica Sinica B
2024;14(2):602-622
- CountryChina
- Language:English
-
Abstract:
Calcium-based biomaterials have been intensively studied in the field of drug delivery owing to their excellent biocompatibility and biodegradability. Calcium-based materials can also deliver contrast agents, which can enhance real-time imaging and exert a Ca2+-interfering therapeutic effect. Based on these characteristics, amorphous calcium carbonate (ACC), as a brunch of calcium-based biomaterials, has the potential to become a widely used biomaterial. Highly functional ACC can be either discovered in natural organisms or obtained by chemical synthesis However, the standalone presence of ACC is unstable in vivo. Additives are required to be used as stabilizers or core-shell structures formed by permeable layers or lipids with modified molecules constructed to maintain the stability of ACC until the ACC carrier reaches its destination. ACC has high chemical instability and can produce biocompatible products when exposed to an acidic condition in vivo, such as Ca2+ with an immune-regulating ability and CO2 with an imaging-enhancing ability. Owing to these characteristics, ACC has been studied for self-sacrificing templates of carrier construction, targeted delivery of oncology drugs, immunomodulation, tumor imaging, tissue engineering, and calcium supplementation. Emphasis in this paper has been placed on the origin, structural features, and multiple applications of ACC. Meanwhile, ACC faces many challenges in clinical translation, and long-term basic research is required to overcome these challenges. We hope that this study will contribute to future innovative research on ACC.
