Enhancement of bone mineral density and body mass in newborn chickens by in ovo injection of ionic-hydroxyapatite nanoparticles of bacterial origin.

Using non-drug, non-surgical treatments for improving bone mineral diseases in newborn babies is an important topic for neonatologists. The present study introduces bacterial synthesized ionic nano-hydroxyapatite (Bio-HA) for the development of bone mineral density in the chicken embryo model. In vitro cytotoxicity analyses were demonstrated the optimal concentrations of Bio-HA compared to a chemically-synthesized hydroxyapatite (Ch-HA). Toxicity of Bio-HA on MCF-7 human cell lines was negligible at the concentrations less than 500 μg/mL whereas Ch-HA showed similar results at the concentrations less than 100 μg/mL. Therefore, concentrations at 50 μg/mL and 100 μg/mL were selected for in ovo injection of both materials into the fertilized eggs. The newly hatched chickens were sacrificed in order to monitor their serological factors, total body mass, bone mineral contents and bone mineral density. The results confirmed that Bio-HA increased the average body weight and bone mineral indices of chickens in comparison to the Ch-HA and negative controls (normal saline and intact groups). In view of the intact group, no liver or kidney damage occurred in the groups receiving Bio-HA which promises the effectiveness of these nanoparticles for the treatment of afterbirth bone mineral deficiency.