The adsorption of two polyelectrolytes, poly-L-Glutamate and poly-L-Aspartate, on hydroxyapatite (HAP) crystals was studied both experimentally and theoretically. Langmuir adsorption isotherms were obtained for both these molecules, with binding constants K = 6 x 10(6) and 3 x 10(6) M-1, respectively, at 37.0 degreesC, pH 7.4, and 0.15 M ionic strength. A theoretical analysis of the data, based on a model proposed by Hesselink, suggested a "train-loop" type of adsorption with non-electrostatic energy terms 3.51 and 4.76 (kT) for poly-L-Glu and poly-L-Asp, respectively. Copyright 1999 Academic Press.