Advances In Dentistry Through Nanotechnology
New nanomaterials for dental treatments boast impressive antibacterial, decay-resistant and biomimetic properties. In combination with stem cells, they are even capable of regenerating dental tissues. A researcher at CEU Cardenal Herrera University in Valencia collaborates on a compendium of the latest nanomaterials for use in fillers, mouthwashes, medicines and other treatments to improve oral and dental health ("Advances in Dental Materials through Nanotechnology: Facts, Perspectives and Toxicological Aspects").
"Nanotechnology can be faced sometimes as a paradigm that promised a lot and delivered very little," says senior author Nelson Durán of the Universidade Estadual de Campinas. "The evolution of dental materials though nanotechnology is real and remarkable, reflecting on a billionaire market. In this way, dentistry was in fact one of the most benefited areas from the development of nanotechnology."
The prefix "nano" is derived from the Greek word "dwarf," and "nanotechnology," as originally conceptualized by Physicist Richard P. Feynman in 1959, refers to the manipulation of matter on the atomic and molecular levels. According to the National Nanotechnology Initiative, any material with components less than 100 nanometers in at least one dimension is considered a nanomaterial. (If a nanometer is one-billionth of a meter, then a single strand of human hair ranges between 80,000 and 100,000 nanometers wide.)
A decade ago, according to the current review, engineers first introduced nano-composite resins to be used in dentistry.
The reason nanomaterials are so alluring is their properties are different from non-nano-materials in two crucial ways. First, due to their small size, nanomaterials have greater surface area per unit mass compared to bigger particles. Second, all quantum effects (including energy, electrical, optical, and magnetic) become more dominant at the nanoscale. Any material, then, will possess unusual properties at the nanoscale whether it be gas, liquid, or solid.
“One of the most promising features of these nanomaterials is their capacity to imitate the natural physicochemical, mechanic and aesthetic properties of dentine and dental enamel”. This is what is meant by biomimetic: human-made materials that imitate nature and natural processes. “For instance, nanoceramic materials have yielded good results in dental restoration, imitating the aesthetic properties of dental enamel”.
Although nanodental technologies have evolved quickly, safety and cost will be barriers to getting them on the market. Some nanomaterials might be toxic to healthy cells, so any new nanomaterials to be used for dentistry would need formal pre-clinical and clinical trials before they can receive approval.
Patients will also need to be told that a treatment will use materials in the nanometer size range and should be aware of any possible side effects. This new technology could also be expensive, and insurance companies may not want to foot the bill if treatments could be considered cosmetic; composite resins, for example, are still an out-of-pocket cost.
Because these composites have been so successful, engineers continue to explore new ways nanotechnologies might be used in the dentist's office. Someday nanomaterials may provide “mechanical reinforcement, improve aesthetic aspects, and induce antimicrobial and therapeutic effects,” the authors explain.
Remineralization of enamel via nanoparticles is already being explored and going forward, the authors suggest antimicrobial adhesives will act as wearable toothpaste while quantum dots combined with cancer-specific antibodies may be applied to the mouth to emit light when detecting cancerous cells. More generally, nanoparticles introduced into common dental materials could prevent or control oral diseases.
In fact, given the rapid development of these new dental nanomaterials, it is still necessary to evaluate their effects on the oral cavity in general, taking into account factors like pH, buffer capacity of saliva, contact with the mucosa, and spreading of the dental tissues. “Many of the existing studies into the toxicity of these materials have been restricted to in vitro testing. More clinical studies are necessary to understand their effects on the long term”.
"Nanotechnology can be faced sometimes as a paradigm that promised a lot and delivered very little," says senior author Nelson Durán of the Universidade Estadual de Campinas. "The evolution of dental materials though nanotechnology is real and remarkable, reflecting on a billionaire market. In this way, dentistry was in fact one of the most benefited areas from the development of nanotechnology."
The prefix "nano" is derived from the Greek word "dwarf," and "nanotechnology," as originally conceptualized by Physicist Richard P. Feynman in 1959, refers to the manipulation of matter on the atomic and molecular levels. According to the National Nanotechnology Initiative, any material with components less than 100 nanometers in at least one dimension is considered a nanomaterial. (If a nanometer is one-billionth of a meter, then a single strand of human hair ranges between 80,000 and 100,000 nanometers wide.)
A decade ago, according to the current review, engineers first introduced nano-composite resins to be used in dentistry.
The reason nanomaterials are so alluring is their properties are different from non-nano-materials in two crucial ways. First, due to their small size, nanomaterials have greater surface area per unit mass compared to bigger particles. Second, all quantum effects (including energy, electrical, optical, and magnetic) become more dominant at the nanoscale. Any material, then, will possess unusual properties at the nanoscale whether it be gas, liquid, or solid.
“One of the most promising features of these nanomaterials is their capacity to imitate the natural physicochemical, mechanic and aesthetic properties of dentine and dental enamel”. This is what is meant by biomimetic: human-made materials that imitate nature and natural processes. “For instance, nanoceramic materials have yielded good results in dental restoration, imitating the aesthetic properties of dental enamel”.
Although nanodental technologies have evolved quickly, safety and cost will be barriers to getting them on the market. Some nanomaterials might be toxic to healthy cells, so any new nanomaterials to be used for dentistry would need formal pre-clinical and clinical trials before they can receive approval.
Patients will also need to be told that a treatment will use materials in the nanometer size range and should be aware of any possible side effects. This new technology could also be expensive, and insurance companies may not want to foot the bill if treatments could be considered cosmetic; composite resins, for example, are still an out-of-pocket cost.
Because these composites have been so successful, engineers continue to explore new ways nanotechnologies might be used in the dentist's office. Someday nanomaterials may provide “mechanical reinforcement, improve aesthetic aspects, and induce antimicrobial and therapeutic effects,” the authors explain.
Remineralization of enamel via nanoparticles is already being explored and going forward, the authors suggest antimicrobial adhesives will act as wearable toothpaste while quantum dots combined with cancer-specific antibodies may be applied to the mouth to emit light when detecting cancerous cells. More generally, nanoparticles introduced into common dental materials could prevent or control oral diseases.
In fact, given the rapid development of these new dental nanomaterials, it is still necessary to evaluate their effects on the oral cavity in general, taking into account factors like pH, buffer capacity of saliva, contact with the mucosa, and spreading of the dental tissues. “Many of the existing studies into the toxicity of these materials have been restricted to in vitro testing. More clinical studies are necessary to understand their effects on the long term”.
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