Fillings Of The Future Stimulate Teeth Repair

Researchers at the University of Nottingham and the Wyss Institute at Harvard University have created fillings of the future which might actually help stimulate teeth repair. Anybody who has ever had fillings put in knows they would like to not have to do that very frequently so fillings that might actually help repair the teeth to an extent will certainly be highly appreciated.

The researchers have created these fillings from a new synthetic biomaterial which may actually change the way dentists treat cavities in the future. The material helps to stimulate repair and regeneration of some parts of the teeth.

The composition of the tooth is such that it has an enamel layer on the outside with a tissue below that which is called dentin. The pulp is underneath the dentin where you find all of the nerves and blood vessels. The material that’s currently used for fillings is incompatible with the pulp so they don’t play with the tooth’s stem cells.

The new biomaterials are compatible with the pulp so fillings made with these will be compatible with the stem cells, meaning that they could essentially enable regrowth of pulp and dentin in a damaged tooth.

Researchers who have come up with this have won the second prize in the materials category of the Royal Society of Chemistry’s Emerging Technologies Competition 2016. Given that it’s early days in this research it may take some time before our dentists can start using these fillings of the future.

Adnan Farooqui
Categories: Medical