effect of fabrication process parameters on the size of gelatin/nanohydroxyapatite microspheres

nano-hydroxyapatite/gelatin (nha/ge) microspheres are currently used in bone tissue engineering as bone filler. in this  study, the effect of fabrication process parameters on the particle size of nano-hydroxyapatite/gelatinmicrospheres was investigated. the nha/ge microspheres were fabricated using water in oil emulsion. in order to design an experimental design, a surface response model with 2 factors including the rate of shaking and water to oil volume ratio in 3 levels was applied. particle size was evaluated by using an optical microscope. the morphology of microspheres and distribution of nano-particles within the microspheres were studied by using scanning electron microscope and ca elemental map obtained from energy dispersive x-ray analysis (edx), respectively. statistical analysis of the results obtained from particle size measurements revealed that the rate of shaking has stronger influence on the particle size of microspheres. morphological studies showed that the fabricated microspheres were spherical with smooth surface. ca elemental map of the microspheres showed that nano-hydroxyapatite particles distributed uniformly within the microspheres.